Attorneys for the University of California today (Feb. 10) announced that the Public Employment Relations Board, the state agency responsible for overseeing public sector labor relations, has agreed with the university on a number of issues in a years-long dispute between UC and the California Nurses Association.

The case stems from 2005, when CNA threatened to strike UC medical centers while contract talks were ongoing. UC and PERB sought and received a court order barring the strike, and then brought a legal action against the union for bad faith bargaining.

UC has long taken the position that strikes, and the threat of strikes, before the entire negotiation process including formal mediation is concluded is presumptively illegal and contradicts the parties' legal obligation to bargain in good faith.

PERB's decision sides with UC on virtually every issue regarding CNA's 2005 strike threat. Specifically, PERB found that:

• UC bargained in good faith during bargaining in 2005;
• CNA committed an unfair practice by threatening a strike during negotiations; and
• CNA may be liable for damages caused by its unlawful threatened strike.

In its decision, PERB stated that "CNA's plan to strike ... was made for the purpose of exerting economic pressure on UC by withholding quality healthcare from California citizens. As such, this conduct was neither lawful nor protected. To suggest that imposing a remedy for illegally leveraging the health and safety of patients for the purpose of economic gain would somehow have a chilling effect on the exercise of lawful collective bargaining rights is, at the very least, disingenuous. Indeed, the only conduct that might be 'chilled' by an award of damages in this case is pre-impasse strike activity that PERB has long held to be an unfair practice."

A decision on the damages owed to the university will now be made by an administrative law judge and reviewed by PERB.

"We're very pleased with this decision as we believe it affirms our view, and the law, that strikes during negotiations are presumptively illegal and undermine the negotiation process," said Dwaine Duckett, vice president for UC human resources. "We work hard to foster good labor-management relations, but union adherence to ongoing conflict, and in this case threatening public safety, hurts not only that effort but we think union members as well."

CNA represents approximately 10,000 nurses in UC's medical centers and student health facilities.