Ordinance - 1071- Ay
ORDINANCE NO. 1071
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY .OF WEST
COVINA ADDING CHAPTER 4.5 TO ARTICLE II OF THE WEST
COVINA MUNICIPAL CODE RELATING TO EMPLOYEE RELATIONS.
The City Council of the City of West Covina does ordain as follows:
SECTION I. Chapter 4.5 is added to Article II of the West Covina Municipal
Code to read:
"CHAPTER 4.5 - EMPLOYEE ORGANIZATIONS"
2450. STATEMENT OF PURPOSE.
The purpose of this Chapter is to implement Chapter 10, Division 4, Title I
of the Government Code of the State of California (Sections 3500 et seq.) by pro-
viding orderly procedures for the administration of employer -employee relations
between the City and its employee organizations and for resolving disputes con-
cerning wages, hours and other terms and conditions of employment.
2451. DEFINITIONS.
As used in this Chapter:
(a) 'Employee organization' means any organization which includes City
employees and which has as one of its primary purposes the representation of such
employees in their relations with the City.
(b)'Recognized employee organization' means an employee organization
that has been formally recognized as provided for herein by the City as an employee
organization that represents City employees.
The rights accompanying recognition are either:
(1) Formal recognition —which is the right to meet and confer
in good faith as the majority representative in an appropriate
unit; or
(2) Informal recognition —which is the right to consultation in
good faith.by all recognized employee organizations.
(c) 'Meet and confer in good faith' means that the authorized representa-
tives of the City and the representatives of recognized employee organizations
have the mutual obligation personally to meet at reasonable times and confer in
order to. exchange freely information, opinions and proposals and to endeavor to
reach agreement on matters within the scope of representation. The obligation to
meet and confer in good faith does not compel the representatives of either party
to agree to a proposal or to make a concession.
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(d) "Majority representative'- means a recognized employee organization
that has been granted formal recognition by the City Council upon the re�commenda-
tion of.the Personnel Board as representing the majority of employees in an
appropriate unit.
(e) 'Me ation' means the efforts of an impartial third person functioning
as an intermediary to assist the parties in reaching a voluntary resolution of a
dispute through interpretation, suggestion and advice.
2452. EMPLOYEE RIGHTS.
Each City employee shall have the right to form, join and participate in the
activities of employee organizations of his own choosing for the purpose of repre-
sentation on all matters of employer -employee relations. Each. City employee shall
also have the right to refuse to join or participate in the activities of employee
organizations and shall have the right to represent himself individually in his
employment relations with the City.
No person shall interfere with, intimidate, restrain, coerce or discriminate
against any employee because of his exercise of any of these rights.
2453. RECOGNITION OF EMPLOYEE ORGANIZATIONS.
Every .employee organization that desires recognition shall initially and
annually in January of each year thereafter file with the City Manager for trans-
mission to the Personnel Board a declaration signed by its authorized officers con-
taining:
(a) The name and mailing address of the organization.
(b) The names and titles of its officers.
(c) The names of the representatives of the organization who are authorized
to speak on behalf of its City members.
(d) A statement that the organization includes City employees who are
members and who have. designated the organization to represent them and specifies
• the total number of such employees.
(e) If applicable, a designation of the job classifications or titles of those
employees in a proposed representation unit which the employee organization claims
to be appropriate and the number of member employees therein. The organization
shall request- that the Personnel Board and the City Council recognize the employee
organization as the majority representatives of the employees in the unit claimed to
be appropriate.
The Personnel Board may, subject to the approval of the City Manager and the
City Council, order that an independent auditor be used and compensated by the City
to determine from the records of the employee organization the actual number of
employees included in the proposed representation unit who are members of the
employee organization. If any employee organization desiring recognition denies the
independent auditor access to its records the Personnel Board shall report to the City
Manager and City Council the number of members of the organization whose dues are
collected by payroll deduction. This number will then be considered the official
membership in the employee organization until such time as the employee organiza-
tion supplies the necessary information through the independent auditor.
(f) A statement whether the organization is a Chapter, or Local of, or
affiliated with, a regional, state, national or international organization, and if so,
the name and address of each such affiliated organization. The statement shall also
include the names of all other cities within the County of Los Angeles in which the
organization has been recognized for the purpose of representing employees of the
City with respect to salaries, wages and working conditions.
(g) A statement that the organization has, as one of its primary purposes,
representation of City employees in their employee relations with the City. Certified
copies of the organization's constitution and by laws or any other documents which
verify this purpose shall be included as a part of the declaration.
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(h) A designation of those persons not exceeding two in number and their
addresses to whom notice sent by regular United States mail will be deemed suffi-
cient notice to the organization for any purpose.
(i) A statement that the employee organization recognizes that the provi-
sions of Section 923 of the Labor Code are not applicable to City employees.
• 2453.5. APPROPRIATE UNIT.
(a) The Personnel Board, after reviewing the petition filed by an
employee organization seeking formal recognition as majority representative, shall
determine whether the proposed unit is an appropriate unit. The principal
criterion in making this determination is whether there is a community of interest
among such employees. The following factors, among others, are to be considered
in making such determination:
(1) Which unit will assure employees the fullest freedom
in the exercise of rights set forth under this ordinance.
(2) The history of employee relations: (i) in the unit;
(ii) among other employees of the City; and (iii) in
similar public employment.
(3) The effect of the unit on the efficient operation of-�the City
and sound employer -employee relations.
(4) The extent to which employees have common skills,
working conditions, job duties or similar educational
• requirements.
(5) The effect on the existing classification structure of
dividing a single classification among two or more
units.
Provided, however, no unit shall be established solely on the basis of the extent
to which employees in the proposed unit have organized.
(b) In the establishment of appropriate units (1) professional employees
shall not be denied the right to be represented separately from non-professional
employees; and (2) Supervisory, management or confidential employees shall not
be included in the same unit with non -supervisory, non -management or non -
confidential employees for purposes of meeting and conferring, nor may they
represent such employees on matters within the scope of representation.
2454. RECOGNITION BY CITY COUNCIL.
If the Personnel Board determines that the employee organization does in
fact represent City employees and the declaration contains the information required
by Section 2453, the Board shall recommend to the City Manager and City Council
that the City Council officially recognize the organization and shall specify the
level of recognition recommended and the representation units, if any, in which the
employee organization represents a majority of the employees.
2455. LIST OF RECOGNIZED EMPLOYEE ORGANIZATIONS.
The City Clerk shall maintain a current list of recognized employee
organizations. Recognition shall be effective until the 1st day of February of the
year following the date of the action of the City Council.
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2456. SUSPENSION OR WITHDRAWAL OF RECOGNITION.
The City Council, upon the recommendation of the City Manager and the
Personnel Board, shall suspend or withdraw recognition from any employee
organization if the City Council finds that the representatives or members of the
organization have engaged in, caused, instigated, encouraged or condoned a work
stoppage of any kind.
As used in this section, 'work stoppage' means the concerted failure to
report for duty, the wilful absence from one's position, the stoppage of work, or the
abstinence in whole or in part from the full, faithful and proper performance of the
duties of employment for the purpose of inducing, influencing or coercing a change
in the conditions of compensation or the rights, privileges or obligations of
employment.
2457. CITY REPRESENTATIVE.
In addition to, his other duties it shall be the duty of the City Manager to
meet at reasonable times and confer in good faith with representatives of recognized
employee organizations regarding wages, hours and other terms and conditions of
employment. The City Manager may invite the Chairman of the Personnel Board or
any other representative of the Personnel Board to participate in the meeting.
Meetings with respect to wages, hours and employee benefits constituting
a part of compensation shall be held only during the months of April and May of each
calendar year.
2458. REQUESTS FOR MEETINGS.
• If the representatives of a recognized employee organization desire to meet
with the City Manager, they shall make their request in writing and specify the
matters to be discussed. Upon the receipt of the request a mutually satisfactory
time and place shall be arranged for the meeting. Only those matters specified in
the notice may be discussed at the meeting. Other matters may be discussed by
mutual consent of all of the representatives present.
2459. MEMORANDA OF UNDERSTANDING.
If agreement is reached with respect to any matter considered at any meeting,
the City Manager, with the assistance of the City Attorney, and the representatives
of the recognized employee organization, shall jointly -prepare a written memorandum
of such understanding which shall not be binding and shall present it to the City
Council for determination.
If agreement is not reached with respect to any matter, the representatives
of the recognized employee organization may file with the City Council a written
statement of the organization's position with reference to that matter. The City
Manager may also file with the City Council a written statement of his position with
reference to that matter. Before determining the issue, the City Council shall fix
a time and place to receive any additional pertinent information that may be orally
presented to it.
• Before finally determining the matter, the City Council may, if requested to
do so by the recognized employee organization concerned, re -refer the matter to
the City Manager for mediation. An impartial mediator acceptable to the City
Manager and the recognized employee organization shall be appointed to assist the
parties in arriving at a voluntary resolution of the matters in dispute through
interpretation, suggestion and advice. All mediation proceedings shall be private.
The mediator shall make no public recommendations nor take any public position
concerning the issue. The fees and expenses, if any, of the mediator shall be
payable one-half by the City and one-half by the recognized employee organization.
If the dispute is not resolved as a result of mediation, it shall be re -referred to the
City Council for final determination.
2460. MATTERS NOT SUBJECT TO CONFERENCE.
• The City Manager need not meet with the representatives of any recognized
employee organization to consider:
(a) Issues of public policy.
(b) The merits, necessity or organization of any department, service or
activity provided by the City pursuant to law or ordinance.
(c) Matters which relate to the management of the City or the direction of
its work force, including the right to direct employees, to hire, promote, transfer,
assign or retain employees, or suspend, demote, discharge or take other proper
disciplinary action against employees, maintain the efficiency of the operation of
the City Government and take any actions necessary to meet conditions of an
emergency nature.
The City Manager need not meet with the representatives of any recognized
employee organization to consider the personal grievance of an individual employee
or group of employees until the procedure for the resolution of grievances provided
for in the Personnel Rules has been completed.
2461. NOTICE OF PROPOSALS AFFECTING EMPLOYEES.
Any proposed ordinance, rule or regulation relating to wages, hours or other
terms and conditions of employment may be submitted by the Personnel Officer to
the City Council or Personnel Board at any regular meeting. Except in cases of
emergency, action on the proposal shall be automatically continued until the next
regular meeting of the City Council or Personnel Board. The City Clerk, in the case
of proposals submitted to the City Council, and the Secretary of the Personnel
Board, in the case of proposals submitted to the Personnel Board, shall mail notice
of the submission of the proposal to each recognized employee organization whose
City members are affected by it. The notice shall specify the time and place at
which representatives of each such recognized employee organization shall have an
opportunity to be heard with reference to the proposal before action is taken by the
City Council or Personnel Board.
In cases of emergency, when the City Council or the Personnel Board
determines that an ordinance, resolution or rule must be acted upon immediately
without prior notice to those recognized employee organizations whose members
are affected by it, notice of the action taken on the ordinance, resolution or rule
shall be mailed to each such recognized employee organization. The notice shall
specify that the representatives of each such recognized employee organization
shall have an opportunity to be heard with reference to the ordinance, resolution
or rule at the next regular meeting of the City Council or Personnel Board.
2462. EMPLOYEE ACTIVITIES.
Not more than three City employees who have been designated as the
representatives of a recognized employee organization shall be allowed a reason-
able amount of time off without loss of compensation or other benefits for the
purpose of attending a formal meeting with the City Manager if the meeting is
scheduled to be held during working hours.
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No officer or employee holding a position exempt from the Civil Service
System of the City shall represent any recognized employee organization in
meeting and conferring with representatives of the City on any matters within
the scope of representation.
2463. RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE EMPLOYEE RELATIONS.
After consultation in good faith with representatives of affected recognized
employee organizations, the City Manager may, from time to time, recommend to
the City Council the adoption of such ordinances, rules or regulations as may be
necessary or desirable to facilitate the administration of employer -employee
relations.
2464. NO CONTRACT.
The provisions of this Chapter shall not be construed to constitute a con-
tract between the City and any employee or any recognized employee organization.
2465. PERSONNEL SYSTEM UNAFFECTED.
Nothing in this Chapter shall be deemed to supersede the provisions of
Chapter 2 and Chapter 4 of this Article or of the Rules and Regulations adopted
pursuant thereto establishing and regulating the City's personnel system. This
Chapter is intended to strengthen the City's personnel system by establishing an
orderly method of communication between the City and representatives of
recognized employee organizations. "
SECTION 2. The City Clerk shall certify to the passage of this ordinance
and publish the same as required by law.
Passed and approved this 23rd day of December 1968.
MAYOR
STATE OF CALIFORNIA )
COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES ) SS.
• CITY OF WEST COVINA )
RAY WINDSOR Deputy
City Clerk of the City of West Covina, do
hereby certify that the foregoing Ordinance No. 1071 was regularly
introduced and placed upon its first reading at a regular meeting of the City
Council on the 16th day of December , 1968. That, thereafter,
said Ordinance was duly adopted and passed at a regular meeting of the City
Council on the 23rd day of December 1968, by the following
vote, to wit:
AYES: Councilmen: Chappell, Nichols, Gillum, Lloyd, Gleckman
NOES: Councilmen: None
ABSENT: Councilmen: None
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
Ci y Attorney
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A -.-A 01Z.-
DeputyCity Clerk
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