Mid-Columbia Center For Living (MCCFL) violated Oregon labor law in its dealing with a new bargaining unit of Oregon AFSCME, certified in July, which represents all MCCFL employees, according to a ruling by Oregon Employee Relations Board (ERB).
In a settlement agreement, MCCFL agreed to pay a civil penalty of $3,000 in restitution as well as legal fees; will offer to convert the nurse who was hired without benefits to a full time position with benefited status; and will provide information to the union regarding similar changes to other positions, giving the union the opportunity to assess whether bargaining might be required or appropriate.
MCCFL is an intergovernmental agency and a Certified Behavioral Health Clinic that provides mental health, substance abuse, and IDD services for three Oregon counties — Hood River, Wasco and Sherman.
Oregon AFSCME filed an unfair labor practice charge Aug. 18, which led to a two-day hearing Oct. 21-22 before an administrative law judge. Another two-day hearing was scheduled for November, but MCCFL and AFSCME reached a settlement Nov. 10.
“Mid-Columbia Center for Living and AFSCME have settled the Unfair Labor Practice dispute on several items in good faith,” said MCCFL Executive Director Dr. June Gower in a Nov. 12 memo. “The union dropped its major claims, and as a result MCCFL agree to pay a small penalty,” the memo stated. “This confirms our commitment to continue the bargaining between parties to move resolutions forward, allowing MCCFL to focus on its mission of serving the community in its three counties.”
According to the ruling, on June 16 MCCFL managers and supervisors distributed two flyers to MCCFL employees, and talking points to supervisors, at the direction Gower. Modified versions of the flyers were distributed the next day, and communicated MCCFL’s position that it preferred that employees not form a union, listing various reasons in supported that position.
MCCFL supervisors mistakenly believed that an election would be held and that it was lawful for it to convey its position on the election to employees. The information distributed was “intended to influence employees’ decision on whether to support the formation of a union,” the ruling stated.
It’s against Oregon law for state and local governments to spend tax dollars trying to stop their employees from unionizing.
The ruling also states MCCFL failed to provide advance notice to the union prior to ending the Community Developmental Disabilities Program for persons with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD), “nor did it provide adequate time to bargain over the impacts of that decision on mandatory subjects of bargaining.”
The IDD program transitioned to a new program in August, at which time Gower said, “MCCFL is financially unable to support these vital services to the degree needed by the community.”
According to the ruling, MCCFL violated state labor law “when, without first providing notice and an opportunity to bargain to the Union, it eliminated the benefits for a vacant bargaining unit position, and when it implemented the decision to terminate the IDD contract without providing the union with a meaningful opportunity to bargain over the impacts of that decision on the IDD employees before the program was transferred by the State to a new entity.”
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