State Labor Agency Issues Complaint Against Fall River For Placing Conditions on Reinstatement of Fire Fighters

Attorney Patrick Bryant persuaded an investigator of the Massachusetts Department of Labor Relations that the City of Fall River violated state law by conditioning reinstatement on fire fighters' submission to a City-appointed physician and a drug test.

In Massachusetts, a public employer must bargain in good faith with a union prior to requiring or changing employee fitness standards, including exams and drug tests. While the Fall River Fire Department requires testing to applicants, the City has never negotiated testing or examinations, whether by a City physician or a personal physician, of existing fire fighters. The City has never required these steps for laidoff employees entitled to reinstatement.

More than a year ago, the City laid off more than two dozen fire fighters. State civil service law entitles them to reinstatement if and when vacancies exist. The City initially reinstated a handful of firefighters within a month of layoff and without any conditions. This past June, the City decided to reinstate several more fire fighters. This time, the Fire Chief conditioned reinstatement upon passage of a physical examination and a drug test.

The City argued that it was allowed to impose these new conditions and ignore Local 1314, IAFF because the Union has no right to represent applicants new hires or retirees. But laidoff employees are neither applicants nor retirees. Local 1314 pointed to multiple decisions of Department of Labor Relations and the National Labor Relations Board that have treated laidoff employees with the same rights as employees. For instance, laidoff employees with a reasonable expectation of reinstatement are entitled to vote in union representation elections. Plus, the DLR has held that public employers cannot deal directly with laidoff employees about terms of reinstatement.

Local 1314 filed an unfair labor practice charge against Fall River. Following an investigation, a DLR official issued a complaint, alleging that the City violated its duty to bargain in good faith prior to imposing these new reinstatement conditions. The next step is for a hearing to be held, providing an opportunity for Attorney Bryant and Local 1314 to persuade an independent hearing officer that the City's actions were unlawful.