591 N.E.2d 415 | Ohio Ct. App. | 1990
Appellants appeal a judgment of the court of common pleas granting appellee "temporary relief" directing appellant State Employment Relations *516 Board ("SERB") to conduct a decertification election and enjoining SERB from proceeding further with an unfair labor practice allegation filed against appellee.
Appellant Ohio Council 8, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, AFL-CIO ("AFSCME") was certified in 1985 as the exclusive representative for a bargaining unit comprised of employees of appellee, Miami University ("Miami"). In August 1986, AFSCME and Miami entered into a collective bargaining agreement which expired in August 1989. An employee in the bargaining unit filed with SERB in May 1989 a petition requesting that a decertification election be conducted pursuant to R.C.
Miami appealed the dismissal of the petition to the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas pursuant to R.C.
"A temporary injunction is hereby issued, restraining SERB from any further delay in proceeding promptly and properly with a decertification election, or such other election procedure as may be appropriate to determine (A) whether AFSME [sic] presently represents the majority of Miami's employees so as to be entitled to be exclusive bargaining agent for those employees; and (B) depending upon the answer to (A), what organization, if any, is an appropriate exclusively [sic] bargaining agent for the petitioners, or whether a majority of the employees of Miami desire at this time to be represented by any exclusive bargaining agent.
"Pending resolution of these issues, AFSCME is temporarily enjoined from from [sic] proceeding further with any unfair labor practice allegation against Miami, and SERB is similarly enjoined from conducting any fact finding hearings or other procedures which might have as their ultimate result an Order compelling contract negotiations between Miami and AFSCME.
"This matter is remanded to SERB for such proceedings. The temporary injunction shall remain in effect until the procedures required by this Order are conducted, the election is held, and the results are announced by an appropriate Order from SERB. Bond is dispensed with, and this cause is continued for further Order." *517
Both SERB and AFSCME timely appealed the judgment of the common pleas court to this court. SERB sets forth the following three assignments of error:
"Assignment of error no. 1.:
"The common pleas court erred when it failed to dismiss the instant matter for lack of subject matter jurisdiction.
"Assignment of error no. 2.:
"The common pleas court erred as a matter of law by incorrectly interpreting O.R.C.
"Assignment of error no. 3.:
"The common pleas court abused its discretion when it refused to apply the appropriate standard of review in this case."
AFSCME asserts the following as its assignments of error:
"Assignment of error no. 1:
"The lower court erred by ruling that Miami University had standing under R.C.
"Assignment of error no. 2:
"The lower court erred by ruling that SERB's dismissal of the petition for decertification was an adjudication as defined in R.C.
"Assignment of error no. 3:
"The lower court erred by ruling that SERB's dismissal of this action was not supported by reliable, probative and substantial evidence, and was not in accordance with law."
This court denied Miami's motion to dismiss the appeal and granted in part appellants' motion to stay the judgment of the common pleas court. Miami Univ. v. State Emp. Relations Bd.
(1990),
Appellants contend that the common pleas court erred in failing to dismiss the appeal for the reason that Miami lacks standing under R.C. Chapter 119 to pursue an appeal of SERB's order dismissing the decertification petition. Both SERB and AFSCME maintain that only employees may file a petition seeking the decertification of the exclusive representative of a bargaining unit. As such, appellants conclude that a public employer, such as *518 Miami, has no interest which is adversely affected by the dismissal of the decertification petition.
Initially, it is important to note that the narrow issue presented is the standing of a public employer to appeal from a dismissal by SERB of a decertification petition.
R.C.
This court has also addressed the issue of standing to appeal under R.C.
In sum, if a "person" — as defined in R.C.
In the context of R.C. Chapter 4117, the Supreme Court of Ohio has concluded that a public employer who participated in a hearing before SERB which results in an order directing that a rerun election be held is a party who may appeal such decision pursuant to R.C.
R.C.
"(A) When a petition is filed, in accordance with rules prescribed by the state employment relations board:
"(1) By any employee * * * asserting that the designated exclusive representative is no longer the representative of the majority of employees in the unit, the board shall investigate the petition, and if it has reasonable cause to believe that a question of representation exists, provide for an appropriate hearing upon due notice to the parties[.]"
The right granted by R.C.
Whatever merit there might be in Miami's argument that it could be susceptible to an unfair labor practice charge if it bargains with AFSCME despite a good-faith doubt as to the majority status of AFSCME, that argument has no application in this case. Rather, Miami's argument is pertinent solely to an unfair labor practice proceeding pursuant to R.C.
For all of the above reasons, this court concludes that Miami lacks standing under R.C.
In light of this court's determination that Miami had no standing to maintain this R.C.
Having sustained the first assignment of error of AFSCME and having sustained in part and overruled in part the first assignment of error by SERB, the judgment of the common pleas court is vacated. This matter is remanded to that court with instructions to dismiss the appeal brought by Miami.
Judgment vacated;cause remanded with instructions.
MCCORMAC and JOHN C. YOUNG, JJ., concur.
FRANCIS H. BURKHART, J., of the Muskingum County Court of Common Pleas, Probate/Juvenile Division, sitting by assignment. *521