City of Allentown v. Int'l Ass'n of Fire Fighters Local 302, 24 MAP 2016

Citation157 A.3d 899
Decision Date28 March 2017
Docket NumberNo. 24 MAP 2016,24 MAP 2016
Parties CITY OF ALLENTOWN v. INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF FIRE FIGHTERS LOCAL 302 International Association of Fire Fighters Local 302 v. City of Allentown Appeal of: International Association of Fire Fighters Local 302
CourtUnited States State Supreme Court of Pennsylvania

Joshua Martin Bloom, Esq., Thomas Herman Kohn, Esq., Markowitz & Richman, for Amicus Curiae.

Daniel Emery Taglioli, Esq., Quintes D. Taglioli, Esq., Markowitz & Richman, for Appellant.

Bradley John Betack, Esq., John Patrick McLaughlin, Esq., for Appellee.

SAYLOR, C.J., BAER, TODD, DONOHUE, DOUGHERTY, WECHT, MUNDY, JJ.

OPINION

JUSTICE TODD

In this appeal by allowance, we consider, in the context of an interest arbitration award, whether a provision requiring a certain minimum number of firefighters on duty per shift is a mandatory subject of bargaining or a non-bargainable managerial prerogative. For the reasons set forth below, we conclude that the number of required firefighters per shift is a mandatory subject of bargaining, and implicates managerial responsibilities, but does not unduly infringe upon those managerial rights, and, thus, may properly serve as a component of an interest arbitration award. Thus, we reverse the order of the Commonwealth Court.

The background of this matter is not in dispute. The right of firefighters and police officers to collectively bargain for purposes of wages, hours, and working conditions is secured through the Police and Firemen Collective Bargaining Act, commonly known as Act 111. See 43 P.S. §§ 217.1 –217.10. Appellant, the International Association of Fire Fighters, Local 302 ("IAFF"), is the exclusive bargaining representative for the firefighters of Appellee, the City of Allentown (the "City"), for purposes of collective bargaining with the City. The City and the IAFF were parties to a seven-year collective bargaining agreement which ran from January 1, 2005 through December 31, 2011.

This agreement contained a provision mandating certain minimum staffing levels of firefighters per shift. Specifically, Article 26(B) of the agreement set a minimum on-duty shift strength of no less than 26 firefighters as of January 1, 2005; no less than 27 firefighters as of January 1, 2006; and no less than 28 firefighters as of January 1, 2007.

In May 2011, the parties began to bargain over a successor contract, but could not reach an agreement. The City declared an impasse,1 and requested binding interest arbitration.2 See43 P.S. § 217.4. An arbitration panel was selected, and proceedings were conducted, including hearings in November 2011, an appeal to the Lehigh County Court of Common Pleas, and a remand of the matter for an additional day of hearings, which was held on April 22, 2012.

Ultimately, the interest arbitration panel issued its final Opinion and Award on November 6, 2013. The award established a new collective bargaining agreement for the period January 1, 2012 (covering the period after the expiration of the prior agreement) through December 31, 2015. The award also made modifications to issues of wages, sick leave, vacation, pension, and overtime. Relevant for purposes of this appeal, the panel determined that the previous contract's requirements found in Article 26(B) regarding the City's implementation of staffing and the requirement that the City employ a certain number of firefighters were suspended, and instead, declared that "there shall be a manning scheduling requirement of twenty-five (25) per shift, which shall include all scheduled personnel including command positions." In the Matter City of Allentown v. IAFF , AAA Case No. 14 360 L 00947 11, dated July 11, 2012, at 5 (reissued in supplemental Opinion and Award in In the Matter City of Allentown v. IAFF , AAA Case No. 14 360 L 00947 11, dated September 23, 2013 and finalized on November 6, 2013). The panel also provided that the City was not obligated to recall firefighters to replace any scheduled firefighter if the number of firefighters called to report to work on any shift fell below 25, where such absence was due to the use of a sick day, due to disability leave, or due to the use of any other unanticipated paid or unpaid leave, except for a previously scheduled vacation or personal day. Id. In effect, the award, which crafted a new agreement from January 1, 2012 through December 31, 2015, suspended Article 26(B)'s minimum shift staffing requirements until the expiration of the new agreement, and, during the term of the agreement, the minimum staffing requirement was set at 25 individuals per shift.

The City filed a petition with the Lehigh County Court of Common Pleas to partially vacate the award on the basis that, inter alia , the provision covering the number of firefighters required per shift was a managerial prerogative and beyond the power of the arbitration panel to compel. The IAFF also filed a petition to partially vacate the arbitration award, challenging certain aspects of sick leave requirements and pension benefits.

The Lehigh County Court of Common Pleas, in an opinion by Judge Douglas Reichley, considered, inter alia , the City's argument that the minimum on-duty shift strength provision was a non-bargainable managerial prerogative. Relying upon the Commonwealth Court's decision in IAFF,Local 669 v. City of Scranton , 59 Pa.Cmwlth. 235, 429 A.2d 779, 781 (1981) (addressing whether establishing a total number of departmental firefighters constituted a managerial prerogative, as discussed below), the court considered the relationship between staffing levels and the firefighters' duties. While recognizing total employment numbers were a matter of managerial authority, the court opined, based on the hearing testimony, that the specific numbers of individuals on duty at any given time was rationally related to the duties and safety of firefighters. As issues rationally related to firefighter safety are subject to arbitration, the court concluded that the number of on-duty firefighters per shift was not a managerial prerogative, but, rather, was subject to the interest arbitration panel's jurisdiction. Therefore, the court denied the City's petition to vacate Article 26(B) of the new collective bargaining agreement, per the arbitration panel's award.3 The City appealed the Court of Common Pleas' decision to the Commonwealth Court.

An en banc Commonwealth Court affirmed in part and reversed in part in a split decision. Writing for the majority, then-President Judge, now–Senior Judge, Dan Pellegrini explained that the staffing inquiry initially focused upon whether the subject matter implicated a managerial responsibility, and, then, whether the award unduly infringed upon that right. In approaching the question, the court considered two of its decisions which marked a distinction between provisions affecting staffing requirements and those affecting the overall number of employees to be employed. In City of Scranton , the Commonwealth Court considered an arbitration panel award which mandated that the City of Scranton increase its minimum number of firefighters to 225 persons. The city challenged the award, contending the size of the force was a managerial prerogative and not subject to an arbitration award. The Commonwealth Court concluded that determining the size of a fire department was a managerial prerogative for the municipality, as such decisions had far reaching political and economic implications. In contrast, in Appeal of City of Erie , 74 Pa.Cmwlth. 245, 459 A.2d 1320 (1983), the court addressed an arbitration panel award which mandated a minimum crew of four on each firefighting rig. Relying upon testimony that less than four firefighters on a rig could impair the firefighters' safety, the City of Erie court distinguished City of Scranton , reasoning that the safety of a firefighter was more rationally related to the number of persons with whom he or she was fighting a fire or operating a piece of equipment than to the total complement of members on the force.

Considering these decisions, the Commonwealth Court in the matter sub judice determined that the minimum shift staffing requirement implicated both the terms and conditions of employment for firefighters and the City's managerial responsibilities, and, thus, turned to whether that mandate unduly infringed upon the City's managerial responsibilities. Noting that staffing levels impact government spending, budgeting, level of fire protection, and taxation, the court concluded that requiring minimum shift staffing unduly infringed upon the City's managerial responsibilities by restricting its decisions concerning the fire protection levels it desires or can afford. Therefore, the court found that the arbitration panel's minimum staffing mandate concerned a managerial prerogative which lies outside of the scope of collective bargaining, and, thus, was beyond the arbitration panel's authority to impose. Accordingly, the court reversed the trial court's order denying the City's petition to vacate the shift staffing requirements.4

Judge Kevin Brobson filed a dissenting opinion. He reasoned that, while the minimum shift staffing provision touched upon a managerial responsibility, because the City presented no evidence of undue infringement, he could not conclude that the arbitration panel erred under the narrow certiorari standard of review. Judge Patricia McCullough also filed a dissenting opinion, finding that the evidence of record established that the minimum shift requirement related to firefighter safety, and, thus, was subject to mandatory bargaining. She further offered that the minimum shift staffing mandate was distinguishable from other mandates affecting the total number of firefighters which had been found to be an inherent managerial prerogative.

We granted allocatur principally on the issue of whether minimum shift staffing is a mandatory subject of bargaining, or a managerial prerogative that is not subject to...

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