EMPLOYER REFUSAL TO BARGAIN IN GOOD FAITH; DEFENSES – Management-Rights Clause; Management Prerogative

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The Board has adopted the framework from International Association of Firefighters, Local 188, AFL-CIO v. Public Employment Relations Bd. (2011) 51 Cal.4th 259, for determining whether a managerial decision is subject to a meet and confer obligation under the Meyers-Milias-Brown Act. There, the court concluded that a balancing test applies only to employer decisions that directly affect employment, such as eliminating jobs, but also involve “‘a change in the scope and direction of the enterprise’ or, in other words, the employer’s ‘retained freedom to manage its affairs unrelated to employment.’” (pp. 9-10.) With such decisions, bargaining would be required only if the benefit for labor-management relations and the collective bargaining process outweighs the burden placed on the employer. (p. 10.)