EMPLOYER DETERRENCE OR DISCOURAGEMENT – In General; Standards

Single Topic for Decision 2756H

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By its plain language, PEDD section 3550 applies broadly to employer conduct toward “public employees or applicants.” The statute restricts an employer’s influence over employee decisions whether or not to authorize union representation, become or remain a union member, or commence or continue paying union dues or fees “irrespective of whether employees are exclusively represented by a union.” (Regents, supra, PERB Decision No. 2755-H, p. 39.) Indeed, employee decisions whether or not to authorize representation occur frequently when employees are unrepresented. Although Regents of the University of California (2021) PERB Decision No. 2755-H involved communications to represented employees, the plain language of the statute suggests no reason a different test would necessarily apply where, as here, the employer’s conduct or communication is directed toward unrepresented employees. (p. 8.)