Decision 2904E – Clovis Unified School District
SA-CE-3040-E, SA-CE-3047-E, SA-CE-3051-E, and SA-CO-655-E
Decision Date: June 20, 2024
Decision Type: PERB Decision
Description: Charging Party Association of Clovis Educators (ACE) filed four unfair practice charges relating to its campaign to become the exclusive representative of certificated employees at Clovis Unified School District. The first three charges alleged that the District violated EERA and the PEDD by, among other conduct: (1) dominating and interfering with the administration of the Clovis Unified Faculty Senate, an employee organization that is a joined party in all three charges against the District; (2) providing the Senate with preferential treatment and extensive, unequal support; and (3) encouraging employees to support the Senate while deterring or discouraging them from joining ACE and from authorizing ACE to represent them. ACE filed its fourth charge against the Senate, alleging that the Senate violated EERA by, among other conduct: (1) soliciting and/or accepting unlawful support from the District; (2) causing or attempting to cause the District to violate EERA; and (3) otherwise interfering with teachers’ protected activity. An administrative law judge (ALJ) consolidated the four cases and issued a proposed decision finding in ACE’s favor as to most, but not all, allegations. The ALJ’s proposed remedial order directed the District, among other acts, to rescind unlawful communications and policies and honor its duty to refrain from dominating, interfering with the administration of, or unlawfully supporting an employee organization, or encouraging employees to join one organization over another. The proposed remedial order directed the Senate to refrain from accepting unlawful support, interfering with protected activity, and attempting to cause the District to violate EERA. ACE was the only party to file exceptions to the proposed decision. ACE’s exceptions primarily sought an additional remedy: to disestablish all relationships between the Senate and the District having to do with teachers’ terms or conditions of employment.
Disposition: The Board sustained certain exceptions and rejected others, ruling in ACE’s favor on the central issue of disestablishment. ACE proved the District dominated the Senate, and disestablishment is the standard remedy in cases involving domination. In the alternative, disestablishment is proper because other violations were egregious, recurrent, and persistent. The Board also affirmed two additional remedies to which the parties largely acceded: (1) proof of support for a petition to exclusively represent teachers shall remain valid for longer than normal given the egregious nature of the District’s violations; and (2) the District must conduct spoken notice of the Appendix to the Board’s decision under conditions which increase the likelihood that such notice will reach the greatest number of District.