BAY CITY SCHOOL DISTRICT v BAY CITY EDUCATION ASSOCIATION, INC
Docket No. 66719
Michigan Court of Appeals
April 16, 1984
133 Mich App 729
Submitted October 13, 1983, at Lansing. Leave to appeal applied for.
The defendants have invoked the exclusive jurisdiction of MERC. Having done so, the matter must now be conclusivеly decided by MERC.
Reversed and remanded for entry of a declaratory judgment that the matters involved are not subject to privаte grievance arbitration.
W. R. Peterson, J., concurred in the result but would hold that any rights secured by collective bargaining are not unenforceable by contractually secured arbitration merely because one party might file a related grievаnce with MERC.
References for Points in Headnotes
[1, 2] 48A Am Jur 2d, Labor and Labor Relations §§ 1764, 1770, 1773. Validity and construction of statutes or ordinances providing for arbitraton of labor disputes involving public employees. 68 ALR3d 885.
[2] 48 Am Jur 2d, Labor and Labor Relations §§ 622, 625 et seq.
1. Labor Relations — Public Employment — Employment Relatiоns Commission — Arbitration.
The claim of a party to a public employment collective-bargaining relationship who has, by that сlaim, invoked the jurisdiction of the Employment Relations Commission under the public employment relations act should be resolvеd by the commission in accordance with the statutory processes; a court‘s order allowing the matter to be deferred to private arbitration while still pending before the commission is counter to the legislative intention of vesting exclusive jurisdiction in the commission.
Concurrence by W. R. Peterson, J.
2. Labor Relations — Public Employment — Employment Relations Commission — Arbitration.
The Employment Relations Commission, once its jurisdiction has been invoked in a matter under the public employment relations act, may not defer decision pending thе outcome of arbitration where one of the parties has submitted a related matter to arbitration.
Skinner & Gustafson (by William W. Allsopp), for plaintiff.
Foster, Swift, Collins & Coey, P.C. (by Thomas A. Baird), for defendants.
Before: Danhof, C.J., and Bronson and W. R. Peterson,* JJ.
Per Curiam. On March 30, 1982, dеfendants Bay City Education Association, Bay City Public Schools Secretarial and Clerical Association, and Bay City Public School Non-Academic School Employees Association filed an unfair labor practice charge against plaintiff with thе Michigan Employment Relations Commission (MERC). The charge alleged violation of the public employment relations act (PERA) in сonnection with certain subcontracting decisions made by plaintiff. Subsequently, the same defendants filed separate griev-
Nonetheless, despite the pendency of the matter before MERC, the same defendants filed sеparate demands for arbitration of their grievances. In the grievances, as in the unfair labor practice charge, the primary relief sought by the defendants is an order requiring plaintiff to bargain over the disputed subcontracting policy.
Plaintiff filed this action seeking a declaratory judgment that the matter was within the exclusive jurisdiction of MERC and that it was not arbitrable so long as it rеmains pending before MERC. The trial court issued an order denying plaintiff‘s motion for summary judgment. We reverse and remand.
Plaintiff points out that this issue has been thoroughly reviewed in the recent case of Detroit Fire Fighters Ass‘n v City of Detroit, 408 Mich 663; 293 NW2d 278 (1980). In that case, the Court held that “once a party to a public employment collective-bargaining relationship invokes MERC‘s jurisdiction under PERA, that party‘s complaint should be resolved by MERC in accordance with the statutory processes“, 408 Mich 685. In the present case, defendants have invoked MERC‘s exclusive jurisdiction, and any order allowing the matter to be deferred to private arbitration would run counter to the Legislature‘s intention in vesting MERC with such jurisdiсtion. Id. We hold that this dispute must be conclusively decided by MERC, and that grievance arbitration must be terminated.
The trial court‘s orders denying summary judgment to plaintiff and granting summary judgment to defendants must be reversed. The matter is remanded for entry of a declaratory judgment stating that the parties’ dispute concerning subcontracting, togethеr with any other issues submitted to MERC, have been placed within MERC‘s exclusive jurisdiction and are not subject to any private grievance arbitration.
Reversed and remanded. No costs, a public question being involved.
BAY CITY SCHOOL DISTRICT v BAY CITY EDUCATION ASSOCIATION, INC
Docket No. 66719
Michigan Court of Appeals
April 16, 1984
133 Mich App 729
W. R. Peterson, J. (concurring). I concur in the result herein solely becausе the facts indicate that (1) the issues and remedies which defendants seek to pursue simultaneously before MERC and the arbitrator are identical, and (2) defendants invoked the jurisdiction of MERC before filing the demand for arbitration.1 I cannot concur in the view that rights secured through collective bargaining would be unenforceable through arbitration, itself contractually secured, merely bеcause one party might file a related grievance with MERC. Detroit