CONTRACT NEGOTIATIONS

What is “binding arbitration” and why we need it in our contract

One of the on-going top priorities for AFT 1493 in contract negotiations is to make a key change in the contract language regarding arbitrations of faculty grievances. To ensure that arbitrators’ decisions are actually implemented by the District administration, our contract needs language that explicitly states that arbitrators’ decisions are “binding.” In the current contract, decisions made by arbitrators are only “advisory” and, ultimately, our own Board of Trustees can decide whether or not to accept a decision of a professional arbitrator.

Our current contract lets the District reject any arbitrators’ decisions they don’t like

The inherent unfairness of this “advisory arbitration” language was clearly demonstrated in an arbitration case from 2009. In that case, a highly respected arbitrator (who had been mutually agreed-upon by the District and the union) found that our District had violated the AFT contract by failing to pay a faculty member for all of the hours they worked and by denying the faculty member reemployment. The arbitrator awarded the faculty member back pay and reemployment. At that point, the Trustees decided to overturn the ruling of the arbitrator, leaving the faculty member with nothing, and leaving all faculty with a clear sign that the Board is, at any time, willing to overturn a ruling that it doesn’t agree with.

What is the point of contract language (Article 17.6) that makes the arbitrator’s decision “advisory”, and gives the final binding decision to the Board of Trustees? This language suggests that the Board is somehow a more unbiased body in deciding disagreements between the AFT and the District administration than an outside arbitrator. If a district Board of Trustees is able to overturn a decision its administration has already lost in arbitration, the arbitration process is totally undermined.

Binding arbitration is accepted standard

In fact, binding arbitration is standard contract language in the overwhelming majority of California community college districts that are represented by AFT. Of the Bay 10 districts, Foothill-DeAnza, San Francisco, Marin, Peralta, Chabot-Las Positas, San Jose-Evergreen, Contra Costa and Ohlone all have binding arbitration. Only our district and West Valley do not have binding arbitration.

Binding Arbitration Survey

It’s time for our District to join the standard practice in labor relations and basic fairness to faculty and accept binding arbitration on our contract.