STATE OF FLORIDA

DIVISION OF ADMINISTRATIVE HEARINGS

LOCAL 675, INTERNATIONAL UNION ) OF OPERATING ENGINEERS, )

)

Petitioner, )

)

vs. ) CASE NO. 76-019

) PERC NO. 8H-RC-753-0251

CITY OF SUNRISE, )

)

Respondent. )

)

RECOMMENDED ORDER

Pursuant to notice, the Division of Administrative Hearings, by its duly designated hearing officer, G. Steven Pfeiffer, held a public hearing in this case on February 11, 1976 in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.

APPEARANCES

For Petitioner: Frank Hamilton

Ft. Lauderdale, Florida

For Respondent: H. Mark Purdy

Arthur B. Parkhurst and Roger Haagenson

Ft. Lauderdale, Florida SUMMARY OF THE CASE

Local 675, International Union of Operating Engineers ("Petitioner" hereafter) filed a petition with the Public Employees Relations Commission ("PERC" hereafter) on December 29, 1975. Petitioner is seeking to represent a unit of employees of the City of Sunrise, Florida ("Public Employer" hereafter). The unit described in the petition would include all employees of the Utility Department, and exclude office, clerical, managerial, professional, and guards as defined in the Public Employees Relations Act. At the hearing the Petitioner amended its proposed unit to include all employees of the Water and Sewer Department, excluding office clerical, managerial, confidential, professional, and guards as defined in the Public Employees Relations Act, and all other employees of the Public Employer. The Public Employer asserted at the hearing that the Petitioner's unit designation is too narrow. The Public Employer proposed that the appropriate collective bargaining unit would include all employees of the Building Department, General Administration Department, Data Processing Department, Public Works Department, Print Shop, Garage, Parks and Recreation, Library, Water-Sewer Department, Spring Tree Country Club Department, Gas Department, and District Drainage Department. Managerial, confidential, and professional employees would be excluded. The Public Employer's proposed unit would include the employees of all of the Public Employer's departments other than the Police and Fire Departments.

The final hearing was scheduled to be conducted by Notice dated January 22, 1976. The purposes of the hearing were to consider and to develop a record from which PERC might consider and determine the following issues:

1. Whether the City of Sunrise is a Public Employer within the meaning of Florida Statutes, Chapter 447.

   
   

2. Whether the Petitioner is an Employee Organization within the meaning of Florida Statutes, Chapter 447.

   
   

3. Whether there is a sufficient showing of interest as required for the filing of a representation election petition under Florida Statutes, Chapter 447.

   
   

4. Whether the Employee Organization is a properly registered organization with the Public Employees Relations Commission.

   
   

5. The appropriate unit of public employees in the case.

At the hearing the Public Employer moved to dismiss the petition on the grounds that the constitution of the national union of which the Petitioner is a local affiliate espouses the right to strike. See: Hearing Officer's Exhibit 7, pages 69-70. The motion was denied at the hearing. The Public Employer further moved to examine the showing of interest cards which were supplied by the Petitioner to PERC. The undersigned was not in possession of the cards at the hearing, and except for the motion made at the hearing, the Public Employer had made no efforts to secure the cards. The motion was therefore denied.

The Public Employer called John Lomellow, Jr., the Mayor of the Public Employer, as its only witness. Public Employer's Exhibits 1 - 3 were offered into evidence, and were received. The Petitioner called Conrad C. Osborne, an employee in the Public Employer's Utility Department, as its only witness.

Dennis Walton, the Business Manager of the Petitioner, was called as a witness by the undersigned hearing officer. Petitioner and the Public Employer have submitted Briefs and Proposed Findings of Facts.

FINDINGS OF FACT

1. The Petition herein was filed by Petitioner with PERC on December 29, 1975. (Hearing Officer's Exhibit 1).

   
   

2. The hearing in this case was scheduled by Notice dated January 22, 1976. (Hearing Officer's Exhibit 2).

   
   

3. The City of Sunrise is a Public Employer within the meaning of Florida Statutes s447.002(2). (Stipulation, Transcript page 7) 1/

   
   

4. The Petitioner is an association which is seeking to represent public employees in matters relating to their employment relationship with a public employer.

   
   

5. The Petitioner requested recognition from the Public Employer as the exclusive bargaining representative for employees in the Public Employer's Utilities Department. The request was denied by the Public Employer.

   
   

6. There is no contractual bar to holding an election in this case. (Stipulation, TR 7, 8).

7. There is no pertinent collective bargaining history that will affect this case. (Stipulation, TR 8).

   
   

8. PERC has previously determined that the Petitioner is a duly registered employee organization. (Hearing Officer's Exhibit 3). No evidence was offered at the hearing to rebut the administrative determination previously made by PERC.

   
   

9. PERC has previously determined that the Petitioner filed the requisite showing of interest with its petition. (Hearing Officer's Exhibit 4). No evidence was offered at the hearing to rebut the administrative determination previously made by PERC.

   
   

10. The Public Employer operates under the form of government commonly referred to as the "strong Mayor-Council form of government". The City Council serves as the legislative body of the Public Employer, and the Mayor is the Chief Executive Officer. Public Employer's Exhibit 1 accurately describes the organization of the Public Employer. The Public Employer is roughly divided into twelve different departments, excluding the Police and Fire Departments. Each department is headed by a department head who answers to the Mayor. The Public Employer employs approximately 200 persons, approximately 25 percent of whom are clerical employees. There are approximately 55 to 60 persons in the bargaining unit proposed by the Petitioner, 12 to 15 of whom are clerical employees.

    
    

11. The department heads are generally responsible for the day-to-day functioning of their department. The department heads will initiate hiring, firing, discipline, and promotion of employees; however, such action must be approved by the Mayor. Respecting hiring and firing, the Mayor goes against the recommendations of the department heads approximately 30 to 40 percent of the time. With respect to disciplinary action, the department head submits recommendations to the Mayor in the form of a memorandum. In the Water and Sewer Department the recommendation would go from the Director of the Utilities Department to the City Engineer to the Mayor. The department head will make all decisions respecting shift changes, lunch hours, and vacations; however, an aggrieved employee can always go to the Mayor. The department heads regularly evaluate employees in their department, and make recommendations respecting merit pay increases based upon the evaluations. The Mayor has a practice of always approving recommendations for merit pay increases if money is available in the budget. The Mayor is responsible for preparing a proposed budget to be submitted to the City Council. The department heads provide the Mayor with information respecting the budgetary needs of their departments. The department heads meet on a monthly basis as a group to discuss safety programs. Safety policies are formulated at these meetings. The department heads are responsible for granting leave time; however, this responsibility is apparently delegated to the chief operator in the Water and Sewer Department.

    
    

12. Public Employer's Exhibit 2 is a computer read-out of all of the Public Employer's employees other than those in the Police and Fire Departments. Those employees who the Public Employer considers to be managerial, confidential, or professional employees within the meaning of the Public Employees Relations Act are designated respectively on the exhibits by the hand written letters "M", "C", or "P". The hand written numbers on Public Employer's Exhibit 2 refer to the page number where the job description of the employee appears in Public Employer's Exhibit 3. Public Employer's Exhibit 3 is a compilation of the job descriptions of all of the Public Employer's employees

    other than those in the Police and Fire Departments. The descriptions were prepared in January, 1976, and accurately describe the duties, responsibilities, and day-to-day activities of the employees.

    
    

13. All employees of the Public Employer other than those in the Police and Fire Departments are compensated under the same pay plan, and receive the same benefits. All employees are given eleven paid holidays, ten paid sick days, and ten paid vacation days annually. All employees participate in the same hospitalization and pension plans. All employees are issued uniforms and safety equipment by the city; however, clerical employees are responsible for maintaining their own uniforms. Christmas parties and other social functions for the employees are open to all employees of the city. There are no functions open to the employees of only one department. Transfers of employees from one department to another are fairly common. Job openings and promotions in a department are always advertised and made available to employees in all departments before they are advertised or made available to non-employees. The departments of the Public Employer generally work together. Many employees in the Public Works Department have the same job description as employees in the Utilities Department. When necessary, employees in one department will assist in performing the functions of another department.

    
    

14. The Utilities Department is divided into the Gas Department, the Water and Sewer Field Maintenance Department, and the Water and Sewer Treatment Plants. These departments produce services for a fee to the inhabitants of the City of Sunrise, as do the Spring Hill Country Club and the Recreation Department.

    
    

15. Employees in the Water and Sewer Departments are on duty 24 hours daily. Each employee works a fixed 8-hour shift. Most other employees of the Public Employer work a day-shift only. Employees in the Water and Sewer Department do not generally work in one place. Clerical employees generally work full time at City Hall. It is apparent that transfers between manual positions and clerical positions are rare, and have probably never occurred.

    The work performed by clerical employees is different than the work performed by employees in the Water and Sewer Departments.

    
    

16. The only testimony presented at the hearing respecting the desires of the employees was that employees in the Water and Sewer Departments would like to have their own bargaining unit. The Utilities Department is separately budgeted, and the only employee who testified expressed an interest in using the revenue of the department for the benefit of the employees in the department. All employees of the Public Employer are eligible for membership in the Petitioner.

DONE and ORDERED this 6th day of April, 1976 in Tallahassee, Florida.

G. STEVEN PFEIFFER, Hearing Officer Division of Administrative Hearings Room 530, Carlton Building Tallahassee, Florida 32304

(904) 488-9675

ENDNOTE

1/ References to pages in the official transcript will hereafter be designated "TR" followed by the page number.

Docket for Case No: 76-000019

Orders for Case No: 76-000019