the Edison State College Faculty Federation (Federation); The Federation asked two questions. The first question is whether a union’s participation as a party to a grievance procedure is limited to those circumstances where a union has specifically ...

 

DEPARTMENT OF MANAGEMENT SERVICES

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Public Employees Relations Commission has issued an order disposing of the petition for declaratory statement filed by the Edison State College Faculty Federation (Federation) on March 3, 2016. The following is a summary of the agency’s disposition of the petition:

The Federation asked two questions. The first question is whether a union’s participation as a party to a grievance procedure is limited to those circumstances where a union has specifically negotiated whether or not it may file or process grievances in its own name. The second question is whether a certified bargaining agent’s right to initiate and process grievances in its own name flows from its duty to bargain on behalf of bargaining unit employees and from its status as a signatory to a collective bargaining agreement. The Commission ruled on the first question in the negative and second question in the affirmative. The Commission stated that Section 447.401, Florida Statutes (2015), does not limit a union’s participation as a party to a grievance procedure and does not require a union to negotiate the authority to file and process grievances in its own name. This right flows from the certified bargaining agent’s duty to bargain on behalf of employees in the bargaining unit and from its status as a signatory to a collective bargaining agreement.

A copy of the Order Disposing of the Petition for Declaratory Statement may be obtained by contacting: The Clerk, Public Employees Relations Commission, 4708 Capital Circle NW, Suite 300, Tallahassee, Florida 32303-7256.

Please refer all comments to: The Clerk, Public Employees Relations Commission, 4708 Capital Circle NW, Suite 300, Tallahassee, Florida 32303-7256.