EMPLOYER REFUSAL TO BARGAIN IN GOOD FAITH; DEFENSES – Business Necessity; Emergency Exception

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The Board clarified that an employer facing a true emergency can take emergency measures without first reaching agreement or impasse, but the duty to afford notice and to bargain in good faith continues as much as is practicable, both before and after the employer implements emergency measures. (p. 34.) Because an emergency is not a static event, changes taken in good faith reliance on a necessity defense must be limited to the timeframe that the emergency requires. (Imperial Irrigation District (2023) PERB Decision No. 2861-M, p. 56; Oxnard Union High School District (2022) PERB Decision No. 2803, p. 45.) Thus, when the emergency lapses, the employer has a duty to honor a union’s request to rescind emergency measures the employer implemented without completing negotiations. (p. 35.)