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ADOPT A RESOLUTION APPOINTING THE CITY’S COLLECTIVE BARGAINING REPRESENTATIVES AND DELEGATING AUTHORITY TO NEGOTIATE WITH CITY LABOR GROUPS
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RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended that the City Council adopt a resolution to:
1. Appoint the City’s Labor Relations Team, consisting of the Chief Negotiator, Director of Human Resources, and Human Resources Labor Representatives, as the exclusive authorized collective bargaining representatives for the City of Stockton;
2. Delegate authority to the City’s designated representatives to conduct meet-and-confer negotiations with recognized employee organizations and to reach tentative agreements, subject to the City Council ratification in open session; and
3. Establish guidelines for City Council Member communications and conduct during active labor negotiations to ensure compliance with the Meyers-Milias-Brown Act (MMBA) and to maintain the confidentiality and integrity of the collective bargaining process.
It is also recommended that the City Manager be authorized to take appropriate and necessary actions to carry out the purpose and intent of this resolution.
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Summary
City employees are represented by nine (9) officially recognized employee organizations. Under the MMBA, these organizations have the right to collectively bargain with the City regarding wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment, which are memorialized in Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs).
This resolution formally designates the City’s Labor Relations Team, including the Chief Negotiator, Director of Human Resources, and Human Resources Labor Representatives, as the exclusive representatives authorized to conduct negotiations on behalf of the City of Stockton. This resolution also establishes protocols to ensure consistent communication, protect confidential negotiations, and support orderly labor relations.
DISCUSSION
Background
The City periodically engages in collective bargaining with its employee organizations as MOUs are set to expire. Effective and coordinated negotiations require a clear structure for authority, communication, and Council direction. The proposed resolution provides for the following:
• Confirms that the Labor Relations Team will receive negotiation direction from the City Council in closed session.
• Authorizes that team to reach tentative agreements, which remain non-binding until formally ratified by the City Council in open session.
• Reinforces that closed session discussions are confidential and protected by law.
• Ensures compliance with the MMBA by preventing direct dealing between Council Members and employee organizations outside the formal negotiation process.
Present Situation
The City of Stockton is preparing to engage in collective bargaining with its nine (9) recognized employee organizations which include:
o Stockton City Employees’ Association (SCEA)
o Mid-Management / Supervisory Level (B&C)
o Operations and Maintenance (O&M)
o Trades and Maintenance (T&M)
o Water Supervisory Unit
o Stockton Firefighters Local 456 (Fire)
o Stockton Fire Management Unit
o Stockton Police Officers’ Association (SPOA)
o Stockton Police Management Association (SPMA)
To ensure a coordinated, lawful, and effective bargaining process, it is necessary for the City Council to formally designate the City’s authorized representatives and establish clear parameters for Council involvement during negotiations. The MMBA requires the City to negotiate through its designated representatives and prohibits direct dealing or attempts to bypass those representatives. Additionally, negotiation strategy and direction are appropriately provided by the City Council in closed session, and the confidentiality of those discussions must be maintained.
FINDINGS
The resolution establishes the following guidelines for Council Members during active negotiations:
a) No Council Member shall discuss or attempt to directly negotiate with any member of a City employee organization once the City has started negotiations with that organization and until a final agreement has been reached for that labor group.
b) All discussions and Council direction for labor collective bargaining shall take place with the City's representatives during closed session meetings of the City Council.
c) No Council Member shall disclose any discussion that takes place in closed session unless a majority of the entire Council authorizes.
d) Any attempt by a member of an employee organization to discuss a meet and confer issue with a Council Member shall be promptly reported to the City Council.
e) Council Members shall refrain from discussions with the press on meet and confer issues until a final agreement has been reached for that labor group, unless a majority of the entire Council authorizes.
f) Prior to the initiation of meet and confer negotiations or following the approval of final agreement for that labor group, Council Members are free to discuss and state their views on all issues that pertain to the meet and confer process and to the agreement, and all other matters as long as confidential communications are not divulged.
g) For the purposes of these guidelines, "member of an employee organization" shall include any employee in a classification that is included in the bargaining unit, any person who represents the employee organization during the meet and confer process, any employee, officer, or agent of the employee organization, and any spouse, or other close relative of any of the aforementioned, and any person who approaches a Council Member (or whom a Council Member approaches) on behalf of any of the aforementioned.
These guidelines support compliance with state labor law, protect the integrity of the bargaining process, and promote consistent and effective labor relations.
FINANCIAL SUMMARY
Adoption of this resolution has no direct fiscal impact. Fiscal impacts with negotiated labor agreements will be presented to the City Council at the time tentative agreements are brought forward for approval.