Arbitrator Orders Reinstatement of College Program Coordinator

An Oregon Community College with a very successful Medical Office Assistant training program moved the program out of one division into another because of a personal conflict between the Program Coordinator and the Dean of the Health Professions Division, who required the program to accept her husband as a candidate, but he then failed the […]

Arbitrator Rules that College Must Increase Pay to Accommodate Athletic Coach Workload Demands

Lane Community College (LCC) has a very successful Track and Field and Cross-Country programs, led by an experienced college coach. The programs have been quite successful and expanded in recent years, along with the coach’s responsibilities and workload. The collective bargaining agreement between LCC and the Lane Community College Education Association contains a provision allowing […]

Arbitrator Rules that College Violated Contract Complaint Procedures

As part of his union duties, the Lane Community College Education Association (LCCEA) President sat on several College Councils, including the Diversity Council.  In 2013 and early 2014 the Diversity Council was working on a cultural diversity training program which proposed required training for all LCCEA Faculty.  The LCCEA president objected to the imposition of […]

Retired Fire Fighters Win Increased Pension Benefits

Portland Fire Fighters are covered by the Portland Fire & Police Disability & Retirement (FPDR) Fund.  The pension benefits of fire fighters who retired under an old FPDR pension system known as “FPDR One” were calculated based on current top step fire fighter base wages.  After the Portland Fire Fighters Association negotiated an “apparatus operator” […]

Contract Settled, Strike Averted

Security officers unit under ILWU contract issued a 10-day strike notice during the 30-day cooling-off period following final offers. The employer filed unfair labor practice charges and a petition to declare the strike unlawful with the Employment Relations Board, and a petition for an injunction against the strike in the Multnomah County Circuit Court, providing […]

Arbitrator Requires City to Reinstate Fire and Police Pension Reversion Benefits

The City of Portland Fire and Police Retirement Fund had a rule which provided that when an alternate payee (such as an ex-spouse) died before the retiree, the alternate payee’s payments would revert to the retiree. The Board of the pension fund eliminated the reversion benefit, and the Portland Police Commanding Officers Association filed a […]

FLSA Action: Two Cases

Approximately 80 Paramedics, Dispatchers, and EMTs filed claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act for wages for training time required to maintain EMT certifications. Hank Kaplan represented the employee class, pursued the case in Federal Court and won a ruling that the employer was in violation of the FLSA and owed two years of back […]

Disciplinary Suspension Ruled Excessive

A corrections deputy was arrested for driving under the influence of intoxicants near his home. The arrest was without incident, and resulted in a diversion agreement instead of a conviction. The employer imposed a long suspension as the “minimum” discipline available under its guidelines, and the deputy’s union grieved the discipline. Hank Kaplan, representing the […]

Nurses’ Union Victory at OHSU

Tom Doyle and Hank Kaplan represented the nurses union in an unfair labor practice complaint against Oregon Health Sciences University. During a strike by the nurses union, OHSU paid nurses an incentive to cross the picket line. As a result of this ULP, OHSU was required to pay the same incentive to nurses who did […]