Commissioner of Administration and Finance v. Commonwealth Employment Relations Board
477 Mass. 92
| Mass. | 2017Background
- In April 2009 the Commonwealth (through the Executive Office of Administration and Finance) and two public‑safety unions (COPS and MCOFU) executed collective bargaining agreements covering July 1, 2009–June 30, 2013 that included salary cost items requiring legislative appropriation.
- The Secretary submitted a § 7(b) appropriation request to the Legislature in June 2010 for the agreements' cost items; the accompanying letter explained the fiscal impact and noted similar requests had been rejected and that approval could trigger reopeners in other agreements.
- The Legislature did not fund the 2010–2013 cost items in FY2011; successor agreements ultimately delayed raises and were later funded.
- COPS filed a prohibited‑practice charge alleging the Secretary’s June 2010 letter failed to ‘‘support’’ the agreement and evidenced bad‑faith bargaining in violation of G. L. c. 150E, § 10(a)(5); the Department hearing officer and the Commonwealth Employment Relations Board agreed with COPS.
- The Commonwealth appealed; the Supreme Judicial Court reversed, holding (1) submitting a § 7(b) request with fiscal information does not violate § 7(b) and (2) the Secretary’s letter did not show lack of good faith in negotiations under § 10(a)(5).
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Does § 7(b) require an employer not only to submit but to affirmatively support appropriations? | COPS: § 7(b) requires employer to actively support funding; failing to do so violates the statute. | Commonwealth: § 7(b) requires submission of request but does not compel affirmative public support. | Held: § 7(b) requires submission of a funding request but does not impose an obligation to affirmatively support it. |
| Can a § 7(b) submission that includes fiscal/policy information constitute a § 7(b) violation? | COPS: The Secretary’s critical fiscal statements in the letter effectively refused to support the agreement, violating § 7(b). | Commonwealth: Including relevant fiscal information is permissible and not a § 7(b) violation. | Held: Including fiscal and policy information in a § 7(b) request does not violate § 7(b). |
| Does a § 7(b) omission or negative statement establish a § 10(a)(5) prohibited practice (failure to bargain in good faith)? | COPS: Failure to support the agreement (and the letter) proves the employer lacked an open and fair mind during bargaining, thus breaching § 10(a)(5). | Commonwealth: Good‑faith bargaining concerns the parties’ state of mind during negotiations; post‑agreement § 7(b) conduct cannot, without more, show bad faith in bargaining. | Held: The letter, sent 13 months after agreement and containing accurate fiscal information, did not constitute evidence the Commonwealth bargained in bad faith; § 7(b) conduct does not automatically establish a § 10(a)(5) violation. |
| May § 7(b) and § 10(a)(5) obligations be conflated so that a § 7(b) breach always implies bad‑faith bargaining? | COPS: Interprets § 7(b) non‑support as evidence of bad faith during bargaining. | Commonwealth: Statutes focus on distinct temporal points; conflation is improper. | Held: The court rejected conflation; the statutes address different times and duties, so a § 7(b) issue does not automatically prove a § 10(a)(5) violation. |
Key Cases Cited
- Boston Teachers Union, Local 66 v. School Comm. of Boston, 370 Mass. 455 (1976) (employer must transmit funding request even if official disapproves)
- Mendes v. Taunton, 366 Mass. 109 (1974) (successor official must submit predecessor's appropriation request)
- Labor Relations Comm'n v. Selectmen of Dracut, 374 Mass. 619 (1978) (successor officials need not be compelled to publicly support predecessor's agreement)
- Alliance, AFSCME/SEIU, AFL-CIO v. Secretary of Admin., 413 Mass. 377 (1992) (inclusion of fiscal views by successor executive in § 7(b) context was treated as permissible)
- Local 1652, Int'l Ass'n of Firefighters v. Framingham, 442 Mass. 463 (2004) (§ 7(b) requests may not condition funding on external events; obligation to seek funding is unconditional)
- School Comm. of Newton v. Labor Relations Comm'n, 388 Mass. 557 (1983) (good faith requires an open and fair mind and sincere effort to reach agreement)