Meet and Confer

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Meet with upper management and/or Human Resources to finalize the plan. Analyze proposed changes and alternatives that were made at the meeting, and incorporate them if they allow you to reach your objective without incurring excess cost or experiencing operational problems. In your file, document the specific reasons why any proposed change/alternative has not been incorporated into the plan. This documentation will assist you later if your final plan is questioned, or if unforeseeable issues arise during implementation. If you do not have union agreement on the plan you intend to implement, contact Employee & Labor Relations to discuss this process and receive guidance onRead More →

Start the meeting by explaining the proposed change and the reasons for the change. You should use the comparison document you prepared as a guide to assist you in explaining the change, and you might also prepare an outline of the plan to share with those in attendance. It is essential to remember that you must participate in this meeting in good faith. The Meyers-Milias-Brown Act, governing management-labor relationships in California local governments, mandates that you shall have the “obligation personally to meet and confer promptly upon request” and “continue for a reasonable period of time in order to exchange freely information, opinions, and proposals,Read More →

You can expect a union representative, the union steward and one or more affected employees to attend. The union gets to select which employees attend, and often employees selected may not be those that will be directly impacted. Management can object to the number of employees if it impacts coverage or other operational needs. Management may have one or more representatives attend. Generally, Department Heads do not attend, as they might be required to review any final decision that is made. Management also has the option of asking Employee & Labor Relations to send a representative to attend.Read More →

It is important that you adequately prepare so that you present yourself at the meeting as being organized and knowledgeable about the specifics of the change and the reasons for the change. It is essential that management be able to explain the issue that is generating the need for the change. We recommend that prior to the meeting you develop a document (or chart) that illustrates how the unit operates now, and how the unit will operate after the change. You might use separate pages for each or do a side-by-side comparison chart. Additionally, you should list the primary reasons for the change, and theRead More →

After consulting with Employee & Labor Relations, notify the employee organization(s) of the change in writing. The notice should describe the proposed change in detail and explain why the change is being planned. The written notice should be sent a minimum of four weeks before the proposed implementation date, providing two weeks for the employee organization(s) to receive the letter and decide if they want to meet, and at least two additional weeks to schedule a meeting or meetings. In cases involving major or complex changes, more time should be allowed as multiple meetings may be necessary. Please see Sample Notice to Union(s). If notRead More →

The need to provide employee organization(s) with advance notice and an opportunity to “meet and confer” is triggered any time the management of a department or sub-unit of a department plans to make a workplace change, and that change is likely to affect represented employees in some manner, even if the represented employees have agreed to the change. Workplace changes include issues involving wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment. Some examples of common situations that would trigger the need to notify employee organizations and meet and confer if requested, include the following: Establishing or adjusting a departmental sick leave policy Example: ManagementRead More →

All County Departments and Divisions are covered and these guidelines should be considered and used by all County management staff. One or more employee organizations may be involved, depending on the issue and which employees are likely to be affected.Read More →

By statute and contract, unions have the right to be notified about planned changes in the terms and conditions of employment, and to meet and express their views prior to implementation of the changes. Management has a duty to meet in good faith and to give full consideration to the opinions and suggestions of unions in the meet and confer process. The Employee & Labor Relations Division is available for consultation regarding the process for meeting and conferring with employee organizations when there is a rule or workplace change that impacts that organization’s employees, from the initiation of this process to conclusion. Please consult withRead More →