NEGOTIATION: A PERSPECTIVE ON HOW TO IMPROVE THE NEGOTIATION PROCESS AS A TEAM - WHAT S BAD AND HOW TO FIX IT

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1 NEGOTIATION: A PERSPECTIVE ON HOW TO IMPROVE THE NEGOTIATION PROCESS AS A TEAM - WHAT S BAD AND HOW TO FIX IT by Yolanda Delgadillo Personnel Analyst II City of Lynwood INTRODUCTION Most government agencies operate by a contract agreement between the employees and the Agency. This contract is called a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). The MOU outlines the terms, wages, hours and working conditions among the bargaining units and the Agency. Most public agencies use similar labor negotiation techniques, some with success and some not. In this paper I will describe the negotiation process currently used by the City of Lynwood and recommend bargaining techniques that I believe will lead to a successful negotiation process. HISTORICAL REVIEW The City of Lynwood is in a period of transition and change that is proceeding at a rapid pace that affects employees and employer relations. Historically, the City has had little involvement in labor relations. For many years, the two recognized bargaining groups have been the Lynwood Employees Association (LEA) and the Lynwood Management Employees Association. However, in 2007 the Parking Control Officers, Business License and Code Enforcement Officers petitioned to form their own bargaining unit. Although the Agency rejected this petition, the employees in this group maintain a strong belief that they will eventually be recognized as a bargaining unit. For many years the Agency has experienced financial constraints. In spite of this, the Agency has managed to satisfy employees in bargaining with more than adequate benefits while maintaining their wages and avoiding lay-offs. The Agency and the Management bargaining group worked in a cooperative effort. Negotiations were conducted in a formal setting. The Human Resources Director met directly with the representatives of each bargaining group and, on occasion, a third party was involved during the LEA negotiation process. The issues were then discussed with the City Council and an agreement was reached. The Management negotiation process was relatively short. On the other hand, the LEA negotiations required a more extensive process before an agreement was reached. 1

2 These contracts are typically negotiated on a yearly basis. Long-term employees have a mind set that each year they will automatically receive a step raise on the salary scale. This assumption is viewed as a past practice based on who the employee knows without regard to performance. In 2005 the City offered the Golden Hand-Shake to employees and five of seven department heads retired. In addition to these changes in top management, the City Council appointed a new City Manager. Under the new City Manager s direction, efforts to reorganize and restructure the Agency began. The City Manager s intent to turn the boat around sounded promising, but employees questioned how this could be accomplished amid serious budgetary constraints. No communication went out to employees that the agency was struggling financially. On the contrary, they were promised that if they stayed aboard and continued their education they would receive an increase on the salary scale. At the same time, the City had executed a classification and compensation study in which it was found that employees were paid below the market rate. The results were announced and employees asked if the Agency was going to compensate them accordingly. The employees were advised that funds were allocated to bring their salaries to the benchmark. Some employees expected large raises and others needed to return to school and continue their education to receive a portion of the raise. The excitement was short-lived. With a change on the City Council, the new City Manager was dismissed. Along with him, promises disappeared, bringing a demoralized, unhappy organization of concerned and suspicious employees. A new Assistant City Manager was appointed. Bad news was released. The City was in a financial deficit and that there would be no raises. Instead, department heads were ordered to cut 15% of their budget. Employees are questioning how the money that was allocated for the classification and compensation study could have disappeared without a trace. THE LACK OF COMMUNICATION AT THE BARGAINING TABLE - WHAT S BAD AND HOW TO FIX IT After attending the CalPelra academies, I felt prepared and excited to be part of the negotiation team. My first experience at the negotiation table was not what I had learned in the academies. There was a lack of communication between the parties. It was more like an exchange of angry accusations across the table. Neither party wanted to accept responsibility. I felt the process could be easy and also that it could be difficult, but never did I imagine the battle I witnessed. When employees do not understand what is being offered across the table, it is assumed that management is doing something wrong. This leads to miscommunication between the 2

3 representatives and the employees. Grievances are filed by employees because they do not trust management. To avoid such grievances, management should refer to the Employer/Employee Resolution and the MOU s and ask: how well are they written? Do employees and their representatives understand these important documents? Are they clear enough to identify the rights of the employees and management? This should be at the top of the management list of priorities to clarify the agreement so that it is written in a clear and understandable language. To accomplish this, the management team should devote time before the negotiation process and be prepared with language changes for presentation to the bargaining group. This time is well spent. Following are elements for building an ideal negotiation team and achieving greater communication between the representatives of both sides: Forming a labor-management committee Working together as a team Focusing on collaboration Having the willingness to try new approaches in doing business Accepting failures and successes in decision-making Developing a clear vision of the future and how it can be achieved Building positive communication with employees Cooperating and sharing interest in joint decision-making Building trust, confidence and respect Providing training for labor management members Focusing on positive problem solving Establishing goals and objectives Having confidence in the system Making the negotiating process respectful Brainstorming solutions and options Communication is aided if you get to know the representatives across the table, i.e., how long they have worked for the Agency and what they hope to accomplish. Finally, consider what motivates the average employee to come to work aside from compensation? What is the best way to encourage positive motivation? When selecting sub-committee members, persons who will assist you in the negotiation process, look for someone who has: Experience Observation skills notices changes in voice or body language Maintains composure in a stressful situations Professionalism Communication Skills 3

4 Everyone in the team should exercise good judgment, take notes for future reference, be dependable and able to maintain confidentiality during the negotiation process. Each member should contribute to a successful negotiation outcome. Once you have selected your team and have written your bargaining proposals, you are ready to begin. The focus of negotiations is the MOU. Revising it to make it clear and easy to understand (userfriendly), benefits everyone. The current MOU s are not understood by employees. Correcting this situation will provide a stable basis for interpreting terms and conditions of employment. Below are illustrations of language in the LEA MOU: Mileage Reimbursement With the approval of the Department Head and the City Manager, The City will reimburse full-time and hourly employees required to use their personal vehicles for the purpose of conducting City business at the rate contained in the Internal Revenue Service code book. No one paid attention to this paragraph until a question was asked by an employee who was assisting another agency in an oral board panel. The language does not indicate if the mileage reimbursement starts when the employee leaves the work station or when they leave their residence. When the language was first created it worked for the purpose it was intended, but was not revised to reflect new situations. Employee Recognition It is understood and agreed that all non-management staff within the City Manager s Department; Payroll Analyst and Executive Assistant in the Finance and Administration Department and Personnel Analyst I and Office Assistant II in the Personnel Division are confidential positions which are not included in his bargaining unit. This refers only to certain positions in three departments. However, the reference to confidential status is unclear. Which employees are to be considered confidential? This language clearly needs revision. Step Increases Any employee hired or promoted to a Step A of a different range 4

5 of pay, shall receive the Step B salary at the successful completion of the probationary period. The provisions of this article do not apply to those hired or employed on an hourly basis. The length of the probation period is unclear. A suggestion would be to distinguish between three (3) month, six (6) month, a year or five (5) year periods. A new hire would then understand how the length of his/her probationary period. The second paragraph of the example excludes employed hired on an hourly basis. What does this mean? Contract employees? Seasonal employees? Temporary help or part-time employees? Uniform and Clothing Allowance Employees identified below that are required to wear OSHA safety boots/shoes shall receive $75 as a uniform allowance annually. Listing specific positions must be handled carefully. In cases of job reclassifications or upgrades, it will be necessary to revise the MOU. If the changes are not made, disputes can arise. One way to address this is to revise the language to include all field workers within Grounds, Street, Electrical, Building Maintenance, and Public Works who are required to wear OSHA safety boots/shoes. Holidays all hourly employees who have attained PERS eligibility shall receive compensation for seven (7) hours in observance of Christmas Day, December 25, and seven (7) hours in observance of Cinco de Mayo, May 5 th, annually. PERS hourly employees are considered part-time employees who have worked the PERS 1,000 hour rule and have gained eligibility and thus would receive credit for the two holidays. Past practice in the interpretation of this paragraph indicates that the employee would be compensated for such hours whether they are scheduled to work or not. If the holiday falls on the weekend, the employees still receive the compensation. In the event that the holidays fall on the weekend, employees will accrue the time on the books as a holiday which must be used within the calendar year. Hours of Work All classified City employees shall be eligible to work a 5

6 compressed workweek (4/10 or 9/80) or flexible work schedule as mutually agreed between the employee and the Department Manager..... This paragraph may seem simple, but it has caused much confusion. Employees have asked these questions: It does not state that I need to be ready to start work at 7:00 am. I can come in at 7:00 am thru the front door and not be late. How long do I have to work to get a break? It does not indicate that I can t combine my breaks to take a longer lunch. Including hours of operations in the MOU is not advisable. Further, each department has it own needs. A quarterly departmental memo posted in every facility and distributed to each employee would serve this purpose and ensure that employees have been clearly informed. Attendance Employees shall be in attendance at their work in accordance with the rules regarding hours of work, holidays and leaves. If an employee is unable to report to work, he must notify his supervisor in accordance with departmental policy. Employees are required to be in attendance when required. But what happens when an employee doesn t inform the immediate supervisor that he/she will be in late or will not come to work? How does Human Resources know what was included in the departmental policy? Supervisors are supposed to contact Human Resources for advice on such matters. How can we deal with the supervisor if we are not familiar with their departmental policy? A two party responsibility should be included in this article. First, include a time frame for the employee to follow. If an employee is unable to report to work, he/she must notify his immediate supervisor within an hour. Second, if the employee does not notify the immediate supervisor within the hour then it s the supervisor s responsibility to call the employee to inquire why he /she is absent. Assuring that the MOU in written in understandable language can be a daunting task. Close attention should be paid to language that a third party negotiator recommends. Make sure the language means the same to employees in the field and on the job as it does to the persons at the negotiating table. Keep this in mind for all MOU language: simple, one-word changes or complex revisions. CONCLUSION 6

7 We are constantly adapting to changes. As employees, if we do not cope with the changes in this environment then we will never move forward. We must work together as a team to serve the community to the best of our abilities and to prepare the community for the changes in the environment. If the negotiation process gets tough, we as a team must be able to stop, step back, think, rethink and then proceed as appropriate. Working in a cooperative partnership to address and resolve workplace issues and achieve a greater communication level through the negotiation process should be of the utmost importance to the agency. Instead of holding fast to a pastpractice (entitlement), employees and the Agency must examine, understand and adapt to the changes that come with future management. Yolanda Delgadillo Personnel Analyst City of Lynwood Bullis Road Lynwood, CA (310) ext 221 [email protected] 7