Victorville Municipal Code Art. I General Provisions

This chapter implements Chapter 10, Division 4, Title 1 of the Government Code of the State of California (Sections 3500, et seq.,) captioned "local public employee organizations," by providing orderly procedures for the administration of employer-employee relations between the City of Victorville (the "city") and such employee organizations as may represent various groups of employees at the facilities operated in the city. This ordinance repeals and supersedes Resolution 05-79 heretofore enacted pertaining to employer-employee relations and any policies, rules or regulations pertaining thereto.

It is the purpose of this chapter to provide procedures for meeting and conferring in good faith, to the extent required by law, with exclusively recognized employee organizations, as that term is defined in article I, section 2.40.040 of this chapter, regarding wages, hours and other terms and conditions of employment.

(Ord. No. 2396, § 1, 11-19-19)

Nothing herein shall be construed to restrict any legal or inherent exclusive city rights with respect to matters of general legislative or managerial policy, which include among others: The exclusive right to determine the mission of its constituent departments, commissions, and boards; set standards of service; determine the procedures and standards of selection for employment; direct its employees; take disciplinary action; relieve its employees from duty because of lack of work or for other lawful reasons; maintain the efficiency of city operations; determine the methods, means and personnel by which operations are to be conducted; take all necessary actions to carry out its mission in emergencies; and exercise complete control and discretion over its organization and the technology of performing its work. Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit, amend, decrease, revoke or otherwise modify the rights vested in the city by any applicable law regulating, authorizing or empowering the city to act or refrain from acting.

(Ord. No. 2396, § 2, 11-19-19)

(a) Employees of the city shall have the right to form, join and participate in the activities of employee organizations of their own choosing for the purpose of representation on all matters of employer-employee relations including, but not limited to wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment. Subject to subsection (b), below, employees of the city also shall have the right to refuse to join or participate in the activities of employee organizations and shall have the right to represent themselves individually in their employment relations with the city. However, this right shall not be construed to require the city to meet and confer with any individual whose position is within a recognized bargaining unit. No employee shall be interfered with, intimidated, restrained, coerced or discriminated against by the city or by any employee organization because of their exercise of these rights.

(b) Nothing herein shall be deemed to preclude an agency shop agreement or arrangement as permitted by Government Code Section 3502.5

(Ord. No. 2396, § 3, 11-19-19)

As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:

(a) "Appropriate Unit" means a unit of employee classes or positions, established pursuant to section 2.40.110 of article II.

(b) "City" means the City of Victorville, California, and, where appropriate herein, refers to the city council of the city or any duly authorized city representative as herein defined.

(c) "Confidential employee" means an employee who, in the course of his or her duties, has access to confidential information relating to the city's administration of employer-employee relations or to matters pertaining to the evaluation of employees.

(d) "Consult/consultation in good faith" means to communicate orally or in writing for the purpose of presenting and obtaining views or advising of intended actions; and, as distinguished from meeting and conferring in good faith regarding matters within the required scope of such meet and confer process, does not necessarily involve an exchange of proposals and counterproposals with an exclusively recognized employee organization in an endeavor to reach agreement in the form of a memorandum of understanding, nor is it subject to article IV hereof.

(e) "Day" means calendar day unless expressly stated otherwise.

(f) "Employee" means an employee of the city.

(g) "Employee relations officer" shall be the city manager. The employee relations officer may delegate the duties and responsibilities given his or her office.

(h) "Impasse" means that the representatives of the city and an exclusively recognized employee organization have reached a point in their meeting and conferring in good faith where their differences on matters to be included in a memorandum of understanding, and concerning which they are required to meet and confer, remain so substantial and prolonged that further meeting and conferring would be futile.

(i) "Management employee" means an employee having responsibility for formulating, administering or managing the implementation of city policies and programs and having authority to exercise independent judgment to hire, transfer, suspend, lay-off, recall, promote, discharge, assign, reward, or discipline other employees, or having the responsibility to direct them, or to adjust their grievances, or effectively to recommend such action if in connection with the foregoing, the exercise of such authority is not of a merely routine or clerical nature, but requires the use of independent judgment.

(j) "Proof of employee support" means: (1) an authorization card recently signed and personally dated by an employee; or (2) a verified authorization petition or petitions recently signed and personally dated by an employee. The only authorization which may be considered as proof of employee support hereunder shall be the authorization last signed by an employee. The words "recently signed" shall mean within ninety days prior to the filing of a petition.

(k) "Exclusively recognized employee organization" means an employee organization which has been formally acknowledged by the city as the sole employee organization representing the employees in an appropriate representation unit pursuant to article II hereof, having the exclusive right to meet and confer in good faith concerning statutorily required subjects pertaining to unit employees, and thereby assuming the corresponding obligation of fairly representing such employees.

(l) "Supervisory employee" means any employee having authority, in the interest of the city, to hire, transfer, suspend, lay off, recall, promote, discharge, assign, reward, or discipline other employees, or responsibility to direct them, or to adjust their grievances, or effectively to recommend such action if, in connection with the foregoing, the exercise of such authority is not of a merely routine or clerical nature, but requires the use of independent judgment.

(Ord. No. 2396, § 4, 11-19-19)