All notes for Subtopic 300.05000 – Grievances
| Decision | Description | PERC Vol. | PERC Index | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2602M | City of Commerce 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Employee organizations have robust rights to represent employees in the grievance process, which is perhaps the most important point at which employee organizations represent their members in their day-to-day employment relations. more or view all topics or full text. | 43 | 89 | 12/11/18 |
| 2563E | Napa Valley Community College District 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances An employee engages in protected activity by asserting a violation of a labor agreement even outside the contractual grievance process. more or view all topics or full text. | 42 | 154 | 05/25/18 |
| 2563E | Napa Valley Community College District 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Grievance processing, whether done by an individual seeking to invoke the protections or benefits of a collectively bargained agreement, or by the exclusive representative seeking to enforce its agreement, is protected activity. more or view all topics or full text. | 42 | 154 | 05/25/18 |
| 2522H | Trustees of the California State University 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Probationary employee’s willingness to serve as a witness in support of fellow employee’s complaint against allegedly abusive supervisor was protected activity, regardless of whether the complaint procedure was administrative or collectively-bargained. Individual employee activity aimed at providing mutual aid or protection to a coworker is statutorily protected, notwithstanding its informal and spontaneous nature. (p. 17.) If individual employees are not free to act together informally and spontaneously to provide mutual aid or protection to one another, then it is unlikely that they may ever exercise their right to form or join, much less to participate in the activities of, an employee organization, a right expressly guaranteed by the PERB statutes. (p. 16.) more or view all topics or full text. | 41 | 150 | 03/20/17 |
| 2522H | Trustees of the California State University 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Allegation that employer’s agent told probationary employee she “should not talk to anyone about the investigation” of a fellow employee’s complaint of abusive treatment against supervisor stated prima facie case of interference with protected rights, since, on its face and without further explanation, a directive not to talk to “anyone” could reasonably be construed to prohibit contacting union representatives, or enlisting the support of other employees for the complaint. (p. 22.) To the extent that an employer’s directive or policy of maintaining “confidentiality” of investigations into employee grievances “muzzles” employees who seek to engage in concerted activity for mutual aid or protection by denying them the very information needed to discuss their wages, hours or working conditions, it necessarily harms employee rights. (p. 21.) Once it is established that the employer’s prohibition on discussing wages, hours or working conditions adversely affects protected rights, the burden falls on the employer to demonstrate “legitimate and substantial business justifications” for its conduct. (21-22.) To overcome a presumption of invalidity stemming from a vague or overinclusive rule, the employer must make it clear to employees that the thrust of an inexplicitly-worded confidentiality rule is not to prohibit discussion of their terms and conditions of employment. (Ibid.) more or view all topics or full text. | 41 | 150 | 03/20/17 |
| 2522H | Trustees of the California State University 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances The statutory term “employment relations” is broad enough to include an employer’s administrative or non-collectively bargained remedies. Because the statutory rights of an exclusive representative to represent employees extends to an employer’s non-collectively bargained complaint resolution procedures, employees who are represented by the exclusive representative in a non-collectively bargained complaint procedure are engaged in the protected activity of participating in the activities of an employee organization, regardless of the personal or individual nature of the complaint. (pp. 12-13.) more or view all topics or full text. | 41 | 150 | 03/20/17 |
| 2522H | Trustees of the California State University 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances While an individual employee’s complaint that is “entirely personal in nature and not an extension of concerted action” is unprotected, employee’s complaint of abusive treatment by her supervisor falls squarely within the ambit of “employer-employee relations” because it affects workplace safety and freedom from a hostile work environment. Employee activity directed against a supervisor’s conduct or performance is protected when its purpose is to further a legitimate interest in the employees’ working conditions or when the supervisor’s conduct affects collective working conditions. (p. 11.) more or view all topics or full text. | 41 | 150 | 03/20/17 |
| 2522H | Trustees of the California State University 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances By alleging that the exclusive representative represented employee in her administrative complaint of abusive treatment by her supervisor, the charge included sufficient facts to demonstrate that the complaining employee, and by extension a fellow employee who agreed to appear as a witness in support of the complaint, had “participate[d] in the activities of [an] employee organization[] of their own choosing for the purpose of representation” on a matter of employer-employee relations. (pp. 11-12.) Whether an employee’s complaint is presented in a collectively -bargained grievance procedure is not necessarily determinative of whether it is protected activity, because, by virtue of the exclusive representatives’ involvement, the employee was participating in the activities of an employee organization, conduct expressly protected by HEERA section 3565. Fellow employee’s willingness to serve as a witness in support of the administrative complaint was likewise protected participation in an employee organization’s activity, regardless of the nature of the proceedings in which the complaint was presented. (p. 14.) more or view all topics or full text. | 41 | 150 | 03/20/17 |
| 2458E | Jurupa Unified School District 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Protected activity may include participating with other employees in filing a grievance, and filing and processing an individual written complaint pursuant to a resolution procedure contained in the collective bargaining agreement between the Union and the District. more or view all topics or full text. | 40 | 75 | 10/23/15 |
| 2420E | Jurupa Unified School District 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Group complaints about employment concerns are protected under EERA. This rationale would also apply to a lawsuit filed by a group of employees, if that lawsuit addressed common employment concerns. Utilizing the grievance procedure of the CBA, with or without the assistance of the exclusive representative, is protected activity. more or view all topics or full text. | 39 | 141 | 04/23/15 |
| 2408H | Trustees of the California State University (East Bay) 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances (HEERA section 3567 grants employees a right to file grievances without the interference of their exclusive representative.) When a grievance reaches the stage of arbitration, the individual’s right to present grievances and have them adjusted comes to an end. The “right” to an independent, neutral evaluation of a grievance is not established by HEERA. While HEERA section 3567 provides an employee the right to present grievances to his or her employer, the statute does not prescribe how the employer will process and consider such grievances and does not require a factfinding that is free of management influence or control. When the right to file grievances and have grievances considered is also set forth internally in the CBA itself, a grievant can look to those processes in determining whether his statutory rights have been interfered with. more or view all topics or full text. | 39 | 87 | 01/13/15 |
| 2391H | Trustees of the California State University (East Bay) 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Invoking the procedures and protections of a CBA by filing grievances and participating in grievance meetings pursuant to the CBA is protected activity. more or view all topics or full text. | 39 | 39 | 09/02/14 |
| 2381E | Monterey Peninsula Unified School District 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Because the e-mail did not refer to a grievance, did not appear to address a contract violation and was not on the grievance form required under the collective bargaining agreement, the “tangential reference” in the e-mail to the union president was insufficient to provide a connection to any collective concerns of the bargaining unit. more or view all topics or full text. | 39 | 12 | 06/27/14 |
| 2349M | Santa Clara Valley Water District 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Use of the collectively-bargained grievance procedures is protected activity. more or view all topics or full text. | 38 | 96 | 12/19/13 |
| 2285S | State of California (Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation) * * * OVERRULED IN PART by by Trustees of the California State University (Northridge) (2019) PERB Decision No. 2687-H 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances * * * OVERRULED IN PART ON OTHER GROUNDS by Trustees of the California State University (Northridge) (2019) PERB Decision No. 2687-H. * * *An employee organization’s ability to independently investigate a potential grievance is an essential tool for determining whether the grievance has merit and, if it does, for providing effective representation in grievance proceedings. Therefore, the investigation of grievances is protected organizational activity. more or view all topics or full text. | 37 | 72 | 09/17/12 |
| 2231M | Stanislaus Consolidated Fire Protection District 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Filing a grievance is one protected activity. more or view all topics or full text. | 36 | 111 | 01/20/12 |
| 2207M | City and County of San Francisco 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances The filing of a grievance is protected activity. more or view all topics or full text. | 36 | 60 | 10/05/11 |
| 2244E | Los Angeles Unified School District 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Filing of grievances, meeting with employer’s administrators concerning implementation of settlement of grievances, and filing unfair practice charge with PERB all constitute protected activities. more or view all topics or full text. | 36 | 133 | 02/29/12 |
| 2211M | City of Santa Monica 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Use of union to file grievance is protected activity. more or view all topics or full text. | 36 | 66 | 10/24/11 |
| 2140H | Trustees of the California State University (San Marcos) 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Employees engaged in protected activity by filing a grievance alleging that the employer was contracting out bargaining unit work. more or view all topics or full text. | 34 | 165 | 11/02/10 |
| 2129E | Sacramento City Unified School District 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Filing a grievance and pursuing it to final resolution are protected activities. more or view all topics or full text. | 34 | 134 | 09/03/10 |
| 2038H | Trustees of the California State University * * * OVERRULED IN PART by Visalia Unified School District (2022) PERB Decision No. 2806 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances * * * OVERRULED IN PART ON OTHER GROUNDS by Visalia Unified School District (2022) PERB Decision No. 2806. * * *Representing an employee in a grievance proceeding and filing a grievance on one’s own behalf are protected activities. more or view all topics or full text. | 33 | 106 | 06/11/09 |
| 1994M | City of Modesto 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances An employee’s attempt to assert rights established by the terms of a negotiated agreement constitutes participation in the activities of an employee organization. Employee’s appeal of proposed suspension pursuant to provision of memorandum of understanding between his employer and his exclusive representative was protected under MMBA. more or view all topics or full text. | 33 | 24 | 12/19/08 |
| 1977M | City of Long Beach 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Filing a grievance is protected activity under MMBA. more or view all topics or full text. | 32 | 140 | 09/16/08 |
| 1970H | Trustees of the California State University 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Employee engaged in protected activity by filing three grievances and an unfair practice charge. more or view all topics or full text. | 32 | 118 | 07/18/08 |
| 1826S | State of California (Department of Corrections) 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Filing a fraudulent claim in a grievance is not protected activity. more or view all topics or full text. | 30 | 82 | 03/03/06 |
| 1807M | Bay Area Air Quality Management District (Mauriello) 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Filing a grievance is protected activity. Dismissal of a grievance as untimely, absent other facts, does not demonstrate that the District interfered with, restrained, or coerced the exercise of protected rights. more or view all topics or full text. | 30 | 51 | 01/13/06 |
| 1778E | Klamath-Trinity Joint Unified School District 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances For purposes of establishing a prima facie case, CSEA has demonstrated that Tyner participated in protected activities by serving as the chapter president, participating on the bargaining committee and assisting in resolving grievances as the job steward. CSEA represented Tyner in matters involving her own working conditions. more or view all topics or full text. | 29 | 167 | 10/06/05 |
| 1787E | Los Angeles Unified School District 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Thomas engaged in protected activity when she told her supervisors that she intended to speak to the union about filing a grievance and when she mailed work-related injury forms to her supervisor. The District was aware of these activities. more or view all topics or full text. | 30 | 12 | 12/08/05 |
| 1360E | Los Angeles County Office of Education (Burton) 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances No discrimination where employee was asked to leave campus for breaking District rules unrelated to protected activity regarding her 1997 grievances. more or view all topics or full text. | 24 | 31016 | 11/03/99 |
| 1323E | Ventura County Community College District 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances The filing and pursuit of grievances is an activity protected by the EERA; p. 10. more or view all topics or full text. | 23 | 30094 | 04/08/99 |
| 1314H | Regents of the University of California (Coalition of University Employees) 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Employee engaged in protected activity by filing a grievance challenging her layoff and by allowing herself to be the subject of two unfair practice charge; p. 8, dismissal letter. more or view all topics or full text. | 23 | 30056 | 02/01/99 |
| 1274E | Los Rios Community College District (Deglow) 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances In order to establish a prima facie case of unlawful interference, the charging party must establish that the respondent's conduct tends to or does result in some harm to employee rights granted under EERA. The stututory right of self-representation falls short of the right to resort to the arbitration process. Under the statute and Board precedent, this contractual limitation does not violate charging party's section 3543 rights, and this allegation must be dismissed. more or view all topics or full text. | 22 | 29124 | 07/20/98 |
| 1275E | Los Rios College Federation of Teachers (Deglow) 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances In order to establish a prima facie case of unlawful interference, the charging party must establish that the respondent's conduct tends to or does result in some harm to employee rights granted under EERA. On its face, the statutory right of self-representation falls short of the right to resort to the arbitation process. Under the statute and Board precedent, this contractual limitation does not violate charging party's section 3543 rights, and this allegation must be dismissed. more or view all topics or full text. | 22 | 29125 | 07/20/98 |
| 1270E | San Bernardino City Unified School District * * * OVERRULED IN PART by Contra Costa Community College District (2019) PERB Decision No. 2652 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances * * * OVERRULED IN PART ON OTHER GROUNDS by Contra Costa Community College District (2019) PERB Decision No. 2652. * * *A threat to retaliate against an employee organization for protected activity interferes with the organization's statutory rights. Filing an unfair practice charge or a grievance is protected activity. Employee organizations as well as employees have statutory rights to file unfair practice charges and grievances; p. 72, proposed decision. more or view all topics or full text. | 22 | 29113 | 06/22/98 |
| 1246E | Oakdale Union Elementary School District 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Filing grievances and representing members of an employee organization constitute protected activity; p. 16. more or view all topics or full text. | 22 | 29047 | 01/28/98 |
| 1185E | Healdsburg Union High School District 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Filing grievances and serving on union negotiating team are protected activities; p. 47, proposed dec. more or view all topics or full text. | 21 | 28055 | 02/24/97 |
| 1091E | Los Angeles Community College District (Mrvichin) 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Filing grievances and participating in employee organizational activities is protected conduct (EERA section 3543); p. 11. more or view all topics or full text. | 19 | 26069 | 03/16/95 |
| 1063S | State of California (Department of General Services) (Strickland) 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Filing grivances regarding overtime, complaints of retaliatory transfers, disputes over confidentiality of home telephone numbers and pay warrants, etc., are clearly protected; p. 25, proposed dec. more or view all topics or full text. | 19 | 26003 | 10/27/94 |
| 1052E | Scotts Valley Union Elementary School District 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Filing a grievance protesting an assignment is a protected activity; p. 17. more or view all topics or full text. | 18 | 25115 | 08/24/94 |
| 0885E | San Diego Unified School District 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances It is well-established that the filing of grievances and unfair practice charges are protected activities. The filing of a federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is not protected activity. more or view all topics or full text. | 15 | 22103 | 06/14/91 |
| 0872H | Regents of the University of California (Einheber) 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Grievances entirely personal in nature filed under a University policy, not a collective agreement, do not constitute protected conduct under HEERA; p. 24. more or view all topics or full text. | 15 | 22064 | 03/21/91 |
| 0851E | Los Angeles County Office of Education 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Pursuant to the Board's decision in North Sacramento School District (1982) PERB Decision No. 264, filing a grievance is considered a protected activity under EERA; p. 2. more or view all topics or full text. | 14 | 21215 | 11/14/90 |
| 0641H | California State University, Long Beach 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Filing grievances and requesting the assistance and presence of a union representative at meetings between the employee and his/her superiors about working conditions (work assignments and duties) constitute protected activity. more or view all topics or full text. | 12 | 19006 | 12/11/87 |
| 0559H | California State University (San Francisco) 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Filing of grievance under collective bargaining agreement clearly a protected right. more or view all topics or full text. | 10 | 17043 | 01/03/86 |
| 0500E | Santa Clara Unified School District 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Attempts to enforce negotiated terms, including the filing of grievances, protected. more or view all topics or full text. | 9 | 16116 | 04/11/85 |
| 0492E | Sacramento City Unified School District 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Protected right to file grievance under contractual grievance procedure. more or view all topics or full text. | 9 | 16094 | 03/06/85 |
| 0449H | Regents of the University of California (California State Employees Association) 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Representation by non-exclusive representative during the filing of grievances, and in the absence of an exclusive representative, is protected conduct. more or view all topics or full text. | 9 | 16014 | 12/04/84 |
| 0328S | State of California (Department of Parks and Recreation) * * * OVERRULED IN PART by County of Santa Clara (2017) PERB Decision No. 2539-M 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances * * * OVERRULED IN PART ON OTHER GROUNDS by County of Santa Clara (2017) PERB Decision No. 2539-M * * *Grievance related matters involving interaction with park supervisors. more or view all topics or full text. | 7 | 14211 | 07/29/83 |
| 0324E | Central Union High School District 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Assisting in grievance filing. more or view all topics or full text. | 7 | 14189 | 06/30/83 |
| 0319H | Regents of the University of California (California State Employees Association, Chapter 41) 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Grievance filing is protected activity. more or view all topics or full text. | 7 | 14177 | 06/10/83 |
| 0293E | Redwoods Community College District 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Right of representation in grievance processing or arbitration of disciplinary action derives for EERA sections 3540 and 3543; p. 9. more or view all topics or full text. | 7 | 14098 | 03/15/83 |
| 0288E | San Leandro Unified School District 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Charging party engaged in protected activity by presenting a grievance against preceived violations of contract and organizing in support of that grievance within meaning of section 3543; p. 7. more or view all topics or full text. | 7 | 14079 | 02/24/83 |
| 0264E | North Sacramento School District 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances Employee's attempt to assert rights established by the terms of a negotiated agreement clearly constitutes "participation" in the activities of an employee organization and is, therefore, expressly protected under EERA section 3543; p. 6. more or view all topics or full text. | 7 | 14017 | 12/20/82 |
| 0202E | Chaffey Joint Union High School District (Fleck) 300.05000: UNFAIR PRACTICE ISSUES; PROTECTED ACTIVITIES; Grievances The processing of grievances is a form of continuing negotiations over the written agreement in which the adjustment of the grievance provides the meaning and content to the general and often deliberately ambiguous agreement; p. 8. more or view all topics or full text. | 6 | 13077 | 03/26/82 |