On May 1, 2024, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court vacated an arbitration award involving the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education Officers Association (“Association”) and a former University police officer who was fired due to offensive social media posts. In 2021, several anonymous University students (known as the “Activists”) submitted screenshots of the Police Officer’s social
Public Employers
Janus Holding Does Not Relieve Public Sector Employees of Contractual Obligations to Pay Dues
Way back in 2018, we wrote about the Supreme Court of the United States’ decision in Janus, which held that compelling public sector employees to pay “fair share fees” to unions violates the First Amendment. As a refresher, a fair share fee is a fee that non-union members must pay to the union to…
Streamlined Notification of Teacher/Educator Arrests Raises Eyebrows
As the summer begins to wind down, the first whispers of fall rippling through cool evening breezes are a welcome reminder that school is back in session. That means it’s an opportune time for Pennsylvania’s 500 public school districts and many charter schools to examine their policies governing employee reporting of arrests and convictions and…
Major Considerations for Public Sector Union Contract Negotiations
As stewards of taxpayer dollars, there are many details that public sector employers must consider when negotiating collective bargaining agreements with their unionized employees. What are the phases of the collective bargaining process? Should outside counsel be engaged for some or all of these phases? How many bargaining sessions will be conducted? What happens after…
Court Holds Union Membership ‘Worthy of Constitutional Protection’
The Third Circuit Court of Appeals, the appeals court that has jurisdiction over federal cases in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and the U. S. Virgin Islands, recently held that a public employer violates the First Amendment of the United State Constitution when it retaliates against an employee based on the employee’s union membership. In reaching…
Supreme Court Rules Fair Share Fees are Unconstitutional
This morning the Supreme Court issued its long-awaited opinion in Janus v. AFCSME , holding that requiring public sector employees to pay fair share fees to unions violates the First Amendment. As we discussed in our prior posts , a fair share fee (sometimes called an agency fee) is a fee that non-union members must…
Some Unions Planning for Impact of Big Decision on Fair Share Fees
It appears that a number of labor unions are planning for the potential negative impact of a big decision regarding fair share fees. We have heard from several public sector clients who have been contacted directly, or who have had employees contacted, by labor unions about the potential impact of Janus v. AFSCME Council 31…
Is the Inability to Perform the Required Duties of the Job Just Cause for a Public Employee’s Discharge? It Depends. (PART II)
Yesterday, we reported on a Commonwealth Court decision that basically concluded that an arbitrator’s award ordering the reinstatement of a discharged employee who is incapable of performing his job violates the “essence test.” We also noted that a subsequent decision of the court seems to be a bit in conflict with that holding. Let’s take…
Is the Inability to Perform the Required Duties of the Job Just Cause for a Public Employee’s Discharge? It Depends. (PART I)
In November 2017, the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania issued an opinion concerning an arbitrator’s reinstatement of a state correctional officer (“CO”). The CO was responsible for monitoring inmates who worked on the prison’s loading dock. As far back as 2015, the CO’s supervisors noticed unauthorized food items in the dock area. Despite instruction to remove…
Another Attempt to Control Rising Pension Costs in Pennsylvania Thwarted
In City of Allentown, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ordered the City to implement an interest arbitration award which contained (among modifications to wages, sick leave, vacation, pension and overtime) a minimum staffing requirement of 25 firefighters per shift.
As every public sector employer and practitioner knows, a municipality has no obligation to bargain with…