July 2008

Service Employees International Union, Local 517M
-and- Tammy Williams

Unfair Labor Practice Not Found - ALJ Ordered Charging Party to Submit More Definite Statement of the Charge Against the Union, Including an Explanation of the Allegation that the Union Breached It’s Duty of Fair Representation by Refusing to Pursue a Grievance Over Charging Party’s Termination; A Union has Considerable Discretion to Decide Which Grievances to Pursue and Which to Settle, As Long As the Union’s Decision is Not Arbitrary or Unreasonable; Charging Party’s Conclusory Allegations Did Not Demonstrate that the Union’s Exercise of Discretion was Inappropriate; Charge Summarily Dismissed for Failure to State a Claim Upon Which Relief Could Be Granted.

Midland County Road Commission
-and- United Steel Workers Local 12075

Unfair Labor Practice Found - Employer Violated PERA by Suspending the Employee for Conduct which Occurred in the Course of Protected Union Activity; Absent Behavior So Flagrant or Extreme as to Render an Employee Unfit for Future Service, Rude Conduct or Remarks are Protected Under PERA When Made in the Course of Protected Concerted Activity; Even If the Employee’s Conduct was Insulting or Threatening, it Occurred During a Grievance Meeting in which the Employee Served as a Union Representative for an Aggrieved Colleague.

City of Hazel Park
-and- American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees Council 25

Unit Clarification Petition Dismissed - Public Employers Allowed One Confidential Employee Exclusion from Collective Bargaining Unit Without Specific Showing of Necessity; Public Employer has Burden of Demonstrating Need for Additional Confidential Employee Exclusion, Beyond Mere Administrative Convenience;  Public Employer Must Establish that the Position Sought to be Excluded is an Integral Part of the Collective Bargaining Process and that the Confidential Work Cannot Feasibly be Reassigned to Minimize the Number of Employees Excluded; Petitioner Failed to Demonstrate Necessity of Excluding Administrative Secretary to the Police Chief from the Bargaining Unit..

City of Detroit
-and- Teamsters Local 214
-and- James E. White

Unfair Labor Practice Not Found – Employee’s Charge Failed to State a Claim Against Employer under PERA; Charge failed to Allege that Employer’s Actions were Motivated by Union or Other Protected Activity; Charge Barred by Statute of Limitations.  Charge Did Not State a Breach of Duty of Fair Representation Claim; No Allegation That Union’s Action was Arbitrary, Capricious, or Motivated by Bad Faith.

Troy School District -and- International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 547
-and- Troy Educational Support Personnel Association, MEA/NEA

Petition for Representation Election Denied - Petitioner is Not Entitled to Sever Custodial and Maintenance Employees from an Existing Bargaining Unit of Instructional and Non-Instructional Public School Employees;  Petitioner Failed to Demonstrate that there is an Extreme Divergence of Interests Among Members of the Existing Bargaining Unit; Difference in Bargaining Priorities Among Members of the Bargaining Unit is Typical and is Not Evidence of an Extreme Divergence of Interests that Substantially Threatens the Unit’s Community of Interest.

County of Washtenaw and Washtenaw County Treasurer
-and- American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees, Council 25, Local 2733

Reconsideration Granted - Commission Failed to Serve a Copy of its Decision and Order on Respondent Treasurer’s Attorney as Required by the Administrative Procedure Act, thus Decision and Order Set Aside and Reconsideration Granted on Those Grounds; Respondent Treasurer Raised Additional Issues that Were Raised in Exceptions and Considered in Decision and Order; Repeated Issues Not Grounds for Reconsideration.   

Michigan State Government
Department of Energy, Labor & Economic Growth
Bureau of Employment Relations

This page last updated 09/18/08