Countywide : Union Takes County to Court Over Deal

Leaders of a labor union took the county government to court Thursday, charging that the county has bargained in bad faith and used an impasse to strip the union of important privileges.

“Their actions call into question the whole bargaining process,” said John J. Wyrough, executive director of the Southern California district of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, which represents about 1,000 county welfare and social service workers. “They reached beyond the issues at the table to take away some things from us.”

A court commissioner rejected the union’s request for a restraining order Thursday, but scheduled a hearing for Oct. 24 to allow the union to argue its case. Union leaders want to force the county back to the negotiating table, but the county has so far refused.

County officials said the legal action was highly unusual, but declined to comment in detail.

“All I can say is that the issues they raised are the ones that the judge heard today, and she decided not to grant the” temporary restraining order, said Judy Davis, deputy manager of employee relations. “We’ll be back in court Oct. 24.”

The dispute first arose over the county’s demand that welfare and social service workers increase their caseloads but has expanded into a broader debate over the union’s ability to represent its members.

The Board of Supervisors approved a 4% pay increase for the workers Tuesday, but union representatives complained that the deal was being struck without their consent.

Dave Carlaw, the county’s chief of employee relations, told the board that the county had made efforts to ease the burden on social service workers and had added 250 positions to help alleviate the growing caseload pressure in that office.

Wyrough and a lawyer for the union said the package approved by the supervisors will damage the union’s ability to hold onto its membership, deny labor leaders leave time for meeting with other workers and take away employees’ right to arbitration of their grievances.