Stammeyer v. Dne, Dept. of Public Safety

Citation721 N.W.2d 541
Decision Date18 August 2006
Docket NumberNo. 05-0711.,05-0711.
PartiesMatthew John STAMMEYER, Appellant, v. DIVISION OF NARCOTICS ENFORCEMENT OF THE IOWA DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY, Appellee.
CourtUnited States State Supreme Court of Iowa

John F. Fatino of Whitfield & Eddy, P.L.C., Des Moines, for appellant.

Thomas J. Miller, Attorney General, and Jeffrey C. Peterzalek, Assistant Attorney General, for appellee.

STREIT, Justice.

Since the Civil War, Iowa has recognized the enormous contributions made to our lives by veterans of our armed forces by giving preference to veterans seeking employment with the state, as well as employment with the cities, counties, and school corporations within the state. See generally Kitterman v. Bd. of Supervisors, 137 Iowa 275, 115 N.W. 13 (1908). The plaintiff-appellant, Matthew Stammeyer, appeals from the district court's dismissal of his veterans' preference claim. The district court dismissed Stammeyer's claim after it concluded it did not have jurisdiction over the dispute. Because we conclude the proper avenue for his complaint was the grievance procedure set forth by the collective bargaining agreement, we vacate the decision of the court of appeals and affirm the district court's order granting the State's motion to dismiss.

I. Facts and Prior Proceedings

Stammeyer served with the Iowa Army National Guard from 1981 through 2002 and qualifies as a "veteran" for the purposes of Iowa Code chapter 35C. See Iowa Code § 35.1(2)(b)(2) (2003). Stammeyer has been employed by the Iowa Department of Public Safety, Iowa State Patrol Division, as a trooper since August of 1985. Stammeyer is also a member of a collective bargaining unit subject to a collective bargaining agreement between the State Police Officer Council and the Iowa Department of Public Safety.

In accordance with the provisions of the collective bargaining agreement, Stammeyer requested a transfer to the Division of Narcotics Enforcement (hereinafter "DNE"). Stammeyer interviewed for two positions with DNE but on December 17, 2004, was notified he was not selected to fill either position.

On December 19, 2004, Stammeyer sent a letter to DNE requesting: (1) the specific reasons he was not selected for either DNE position; (2) that any such reasons be filed for public review; and (3) that this information be sent to him within ten days of the successful applicant's selection.

DNE did not respond to this request, so Stammeyer filed a petition in district court appealing DNE's decision and applying for a writ of mandamus. See id. § 35C.4 (stating a refusal to allow a veterans' preference entitles the veteran-applicant to maintain an action of mandamus to right the wrong). Stammeyer alleged he was entitled to preference in employment as a veteran and asked the district court to set aside the appointment and to require DNE to allow him the veterans' preference. In his application for writ of mandamus, he alleged Iowa Code chapter 35C imposed a duty on DNE, DNE breached this duty, and a writ should lie to "right the wrong."

The State filed a motion to dismiss alleging the district court lacked subject matter jurisdiction to hear the case because the collective bargaining agreement and chapter 20 of the Iowa Code govern Stammeyer's transfer and provide the exclusive grievance procedure for resolving disputes. It also alleged the veterans' preference applies only to "appointment or employment," not inter-divisional transfers. See id. §§ 35C.1, .3.

The district court concluded the grievance procedures set forth in the collective bargaining agreement controlled the dispute and deprived the court of jurisdiction. See id. § 20.18 (stating public employees shall follow the grievance procedures provided in a collective bargaining agreement).

Stammeyer appealed this dismissal, claiming he was improperly denied the opportunity to raise his veterans' preference claim in district court. He further contended his veterans' preference rights were violated when DNE filled one of the positions with a person who was not a current state employee. The State Police Officers Council filed an amicus curiae brief arguing the district court erred in dismissing Stammeyer's case because the ruling effectively deprived him of the veterans' preference rights conveyed to him by chapter 35C and deprived him of any meaningful challenge to the actions which disregarded his veterans' preference rights.

The court of appeals held chapter 20 of the Iowa Code did not preclude Stammeyer from availing himself of the specific remedies set forth in chapter 35C. The court of appeals reversed the district court's ruling and remanded the case for further proceedings. We granted further review.

II. Standard of Review

"The [district] court has inherent power to determine whether it has jurisdiction over the subject matter of the proceedings before it." Tigges v. City of Ames, 356 N.W.2d 503, 512 (Iowa 1984). Our scope of review of rulings on subject matter jurisdiction is for correction of errors at law. Id.

III. Merits

The question presented in this case is whether a public employee subject to a collective bargaining agreement can bypass mandatory grievance procedures and seek relief directly from the district court under the Iowa Veterans' Preference Law. The district court answered this question in the negative, and Stammeyer made two general arguments on appeal: (1) the grievance procedure set forth in the collective bargaining agreement is not the exclusive remedy for veterans' preference claims; (2) because one of the positions was filled by a person who was not a state employee, he should be treated as a new applicant and not be bound by the collective bargaining agreement. We will address each argument in turn.

A. Exclusive Remedy

Chapter 35C provides veterans are entitled "to preference in appointment and employment over other applicants of no greater qualifications." Iowa Code § 35C.1(1). A refusal to allow the preference entitles the applicant to maintain an action of mandamus to right the wrong. Id. § 35C.4. If, after receiving evidence, the court finds the veteran/applicant was qualified to hold the position for which he or she has applied, the court can direct further action by the appointing body. Id. § 35C.5.

While chapter 35C does not specifically address employee transfers, the collective bargaining agreement which governs Stammeyer's employment with the Iowa Department of Safety has explicit provisions that govern the employee transfer process. When making the decision as to which potential transferee should be hired, the agreement provides the employer "will take into consideration ability, job requirements, operational efficiency and seniority." The employer is not required to take into consideration the applicant's status as a veteran.

The agreement also sets forth a specific grievance procedure for complaints "involving an alleged violation of a specific provision of the [collective bargaining] Agreement, or the interpretation or application of a term of this Agreement." The agreement states the grievance procedure shall be "exclusive" and "shall replace any other grievance procedure for adjustment of any disputes arising from the application and interpretation of this Agreement." See also id. § 20.18 (stating public employees shall follow the grievance procedures provided in a collective bargaining agreement).

Stammeyer contends public employees who are subject to collective bargaining agreements are also allowed to pursue remedies under chapter 35C because veterans' preferences are not a mandatory subject of collective bargaining and chapter 35C overrides any inconsistent provisions in a collective bargaining agreement. This argument involves the intersection of two different chapters of the Iowa Code— veterans' preference rights under chapter 35C and public employment relations (collective bargaining) under chapter 20.

Iowa Code chapter 20, the Public Employment Relations Act, is designed "to promote harmonious and co-operative relationships between government and its employees by permitting public employees to organize and bargain collectively." Id. § 20.1. Section 20.9 provides the public employer and the employee organization shall meet to negotiate with respect to

wages, hours, vacations, insurance, holidays, leaves of absence, shift differentials, overtime compensation, supplemental pay, seniority, transfer procedures, job classifications, health and safety matters, evaluation procedures, procedures for staff reduction, in-service training and other matters mutually agreed upon.

(Emphasis added.) The product of these negotiations is the collective bargaining agreement.

Chapter 20 places one important limitation on the scope of collective bargaining agreements. It ensures that Iowa statutes supersede terms in a collective bargaining agreement that are inconsistent with Iowa law. Section 20.28 provides:

A provision of the Code which is inconsistent with any term or condition of a collective bargaining agreement which is made final under this chapter shall supersede the term or condition of the collective bargaining agreement unless otherwise provided by the general assembly.

(Emphasis added.) Stammeyer argues the phrase in section 35C.1 which states "preference in appointment and employment over other applicants of no greater qualifications" gives veterans' preference rights to current state employees seeking a transfer. He argues the transfer provisions in the collective bargaining agreement which do not give such a preference are therefore inconsistent with the Iowa Code. Because of this alleged inconsistency, Stammeyer contends he is not subject to the mandatory grievance procedures set forth in the collective bargaining agreement. In order for this court to conclude Stammeyer was not subject to the mandatory grievance procedures set forth in the collective bargaining agreement, we must first find there...

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