New Orleans Firefighters Ass'n v. Civil Service Com'n of City of New Orleans

• Decision Date: 29 October 1982
• Docket Number: No. 82-C-0025,82-C-0025
• Citation: 422 So.2d 402
• Parties: 25 Wage & Hour Cas. (BNA) 1244 NEW ORLEANS FIREFIGHTERS ASSOCIATION, et al. v. CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION OF the CITY OF NEW ORLEANS, et al.
• Court: Louisiana Supreme Court

Page 402

422 So.2d 402

25 Wage & Hour Cas. (BNA) 1244

NEW ORLEANS FIREFIGHTERS ASSOCIATION, et al. v. CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION OF the CITY OF NEW ORLEANS, et al.

No. 82-C-0025.

Supreme Court of Louisiana.

Oct. 29, 1982.

Rehearings Denied Dec. 17, 1982.

Ralph D. Dwyer, Jr., New Orleans, for applicant.

Louis L. Robein, Jr., Barker, Boudreaux, Lamy, Gardner & Foley, New Orleans, Salvador Anzelmo, City Atty., Galen S. Brown, Deputy City Atty., for respondent.

DENNIS, Justice.

We are confronted here with the problem of determining the allocation of constitutional power between the Legislature and the City Civil Service Commission to make rules of law establishing New Orleans firefighters' minimum and overtime wages. This question, which is one of first impression under the 1974 Louisiana Constitution, arises because of a conflict between state statutes requiring inclusion of firefighters' supplemental salaries in overtime wage computations and the New Orleans Civil Service Commission's uniform pay plan, which excludes such salaries from the calculations.

The New Orleans Firefighters Association Local 632 AFL-CIO and several of its members filed this class action suit against the City of New Orleans and the City Civil Service Commission requesting a judgment declaring their rights to have supplemental salaries included in overtime wage computations and a mandamus of the defendants to enforce these rights. ¹ After a trial on the merits, the trial court found that the civil service rule for the calculation of overtime wages was ambiguous and not in conflict with an agreement entered into by the city with the firemen's union to pay overtime wages based on supplemental salaries, and held that the agreement was enforceable. ² However, the instruments in question and the record indicate that the pay plan is unambiguous, that the agreement is in conflict with the pay plan, and that the agreement is therefore unenforceable unless it can be shown that the civil service commission rule is invalid. ³ The court of appeal affirmed the result reached by the trial court, but reasoned that because the supplemental salary statute regulates minimum wages, a subject upon which the constitution has reserved to the legislature its plenary power to legislate, the statute takes precedence over the civil service commission's pay plan. We granted certiorari to review the court of appeal's interpretation and application of legal and constitutional precepts.

Specifically, we are called upon to answer two questions: (1) Does the Legislature's plenary power to enact a law providing for "minimum wages" or "working conditions" for firemen yield to the Civil Service Commission's power to adopt uniform pay scales? (2) Do the statutes setting a minimum wage schedule, overtime rules, and supplemental salaries constitute law providing for "minimum wages" or "working conditions" for firemen?

I

A

The 1974 Louisiana Constitution reserves to the Legislature its plenary power to enact law providing for the minimum wages and working conditions of firemen. This power is not diminished by, nor in conflict with, the power of the City Civil Service Commission to adopt a uniform pay plan affecting the salaries of New Orleans firefighters. Although the power of the City Civil Service Commission is exclusive within its sphere of authority, the setting of a statewide floor under wages and a standard for working conditions is solely within the prerogative of the legislature. Laws duly enacted by the legislature on these subjects must be accepted by the commission in formulating a uniform pay plan.

Article 6 § 14 of the 1974 Louisiana Constitution provides:

No law requiring increased expenditures for wages, hours, working conditions, pension and retirement benefits, vacation, or sick leave benefits of political subdivisions employees, except a law providing for civil service, minimum wages, working conditions, and retirement benefits for firemen and municipal policemen, shall become effective until approved by ordinance enacted by the governing authority of the affected political subdivision or until the legislature appropriates funds for the purpose to the affected political subdivision and only to the extent and amount that such funds are provided. This Section shall not apply to a school board.

This section acts as a limitation upon the otherwise plenary lawmaking power of the Legislature recognized by Art. 3 § 1 of the Constitution. It provides that legislation increasing a political subdivision's employee benefits shall not become effective until approved by its governing authority or until the legislature appropriates funds for the purpose.

The provision contains an exception, however, which reserves to the legislature its power to enact laws "providing for civil service, minimum wages, working conditions, and retirement benefits for firemen and municipal policemen...." Id. The language and logic of this provision, as well as the proceedings in the convention which drafted the constitution, indicate that the lawmaking power of the Legislature is not qualified, either conceptually or geographically, on these subjects.

The legislative power of the state is vested in the Legislature. La.Const. 1974, Art. 3 § 1. Except as expressly provided by the constitution, no other branch of government, nor any person holding office in one of them, may exercise the legislative power. Id. Art. II §§ 1 and 2. Furthermore, it is a general principle of judicial interpretation of a state constitution that, unlike the federal constitution, a state charter's provisions are not grants of power but instead are limitations on the otherwise plenary power of the people of a state exercised through its legislature. In its exercise of the entire legislative power of the state, the legislature may enact any legislation that the state constitution does not prohibit. Thus, to hold legislation invalid under the state constitution, it is necessary to rely upon some particular constitutional provision that limits the power of the legislature to enact the statute appealed. State ex rel Guste v. Legislative Budget Committee, 347 So.2d 160 (La.1977); Hainkel v. Henry, 313 So.2d 577 (La.1975); In re Gulf Oxygen Welder's Supply Profit Sharing Plan, 297 Sol2d 663 (La.1974). See also, State v. Mallery, 364 So.2d 1283, 1284 (La.1978) ("Except as limited by the constitution its power is plenary"); Swift v. State, 342 So.2d 191, 194 (La.1977) ("Unlike Congress, our State Legislature has all powers of legislation not specifically denied it by the Louisiana constitution").

There is nothing in the wording of Art. 6 § 14 that restricts the power of the legislature to enact minimum wage and working condition laws for firemen. On the contrary, this power is expressly reserved to the legislature as an exception to the provision's restraint upon laws increasing the financial burden of political subdivisions.

The subject matter left by Art. 6 § 14 to the legislature's prerogative, and the policy choices inherent in any action in that area, require that no limitations be placed upon the legislature's power regarding firemen's minimum wage and labor standards statutes. In order to set a floor under wages and eliminate substandard labor conditions in fire departments generally, it is necessary that the legislature be empowered to deal with such issues comprehensively. If the lawmaking branch were restricted either by geographical limitation or the policy of other agencies in considering socioeconomic data and formulating fair labor standards, it would be impossible for it to establish a minimum wage or a standard working condition pursuant to its own conception of state policy. Since the constitution plainly calls for the legislature to establish statewide rules for the measurement of firemen's wages and working conditions, we conclude that its power in this regard is exclusive.

The record of the debates at the constitutional convention confirms our interpretation as being consistent with the understanding of delegates both for and against the provision. Although we do not find any ambiguity in the constitution on the question, proceedings in the convention which drafted the instrument are valuable aids, and should be given some weight, in determining the purpose, intent, and consequent meaning of provisions for those who find them doubtful. See, State ex rel Brewster v. City of New Orleans, 35 La.Ann 532 (1883). See, e.g. Hainkel v. Henry, supra. See generally, 16 Am.Jur.2d Const.Law § 129 at n. 95.

Article 6 § 14 was proposed by the Committee on Local and Parochial government, adopted by the constitutional convention without substantial change, and approved by the electorate. Most of the convention debate on this section focused on whether to delete or modify the language reserving the Legislature's prerogative over minimum wages and labor standards for firemen and policemen. Opponents of the reservation of the legislative power introduced proposed amendments to either delete or defeat the provision. Delegate Lennox proposed an amendment to delete the legislative power clause which was defeated by a vote of 48 to 73. 7 Records of the Louisiana Constitutional Convention of 1973; Convention Transcripts 1480, 1492. The failure of the Lennox proposal inspired Delegate Lowe to offer an amendment deleting the entire section, but it also was defeated by a vote of 36 to 78. 7 Records of the Louisiana Constitutional Convention of 1973: Convention Transcript 1496. Finally, and most significantly, Delegate Rachal proposed an exemption for the City of New Orleans and its civil service commission from the effect of state minimum wage and working condition laws for firemen and policemen. 7 Records of the Louisiana Constitutional Convention of 1973: Convention Transcripts 1497. This crucial amendment, which epitomizes the controversy now before the court, failed by a 43 to 71 vote. Id. at 1498. During the...