PHRca California Labor Relations and Collective Bargaining 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which California agency oversees collective bargaining disputes for public sector employees (excluding agricultural workers)?
- NLRB
- Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) (Correct answer)
- Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE)
- CalOSHA
Correct answer: Public Employment Relations Board (PERB)
PERB administers collective bargaining statutes for California's public sector employees, including state, local government, and educational employees.
Question 2: The Meyers-Milias-Brown Act (MMBA) governs collective bargaining for which group of employees?
- California state civil service employees
- Local government employees such as city and county workers (Correct answer)
- K-12 school district employees
- Agricultural workers
Correct answer: Local government employees such as city and county workers
The MMBA governs labor relations for local public agencies, including cities, counties, and special districts in California.
Question 3: California's Agricultural Labor Relations Act (ALRA) was signed into law in which year, making California the first state to grant farm workers collective bargaining rights?
- 1965
- 1970
- 1975 (Correct answer)
- 1980
Correct answer: 1975
The ALRA was signed into law in 1975, representing a landmark victory for César Chávez and the United Farm Workers movement.
Question 4: The National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) does NOT apply to which category of employers?
- Private sector manufacturing companies
- Private sector retail stores
- Federal, state, and local government agencies (Correct answer)
- Private sector healthcare facilities
Correct answer: Federal, state, and local government agencies
The NLRA covers private sector employers; public sector government agencies are excluded and instead covered by separate federal or state statutes.
Question 5: Under California public sector labor law, 'good faith' bargaining requires an employer to:
- Reach a final agreement on all union proposals within 90 days
- Meet at reasonable times and genuinely try to reach agreement, without being required to agree to any specific proposal (Correct answer)
- Accept all union wage demands up to the cost-of-living increase
- Use a state-appointed mediator for every bargaining session
Correct answer: Meet at reasonable times and genuinely try to reach agreement, without being required to agree to any specific proposal
Good faith bargaining obligates parties to meet at reasonable times and genuinely attempt to reach agreement, but does not compel agreement to any particular proposal.
Question 6: Which California statute governs collective bargaining for K-12 school districts and community colleges?
- Meyers-Milias-Brown Act
- Ralph C. Dills Act
- Educational Employment Relations Act (EERA/Rodda Act) (Correct answer)
- Higher Education Employer-Employee Relations Act (HEERA)
Correct answer: Educational Employment Relations Act (EERA/Rodda Act)
The Educational Employment Relations Act (EERA), also called the Rodda Act, governs collective bargaining for K-12 school districts and community college districts.
Question 7: Under California public sector labor law, an employer commits an unfair labor practice (ULP) when it:
- Offers wages above the prevailing market rate to employees
- Refuses to meet and confer in good faith with a recognized employee organization (Correct answer)
- Endorses a political candidate without consulting the union
- Provides voluntary benefits not required by the collective bargaining agreement
Correct answer: Refuses to meet and confer in good faith with a recognized employee organization
Refusing to meet and confer in good faith with a recognized employee organization is a classic unfair labor practice under California's public sector collective bargaining statutes.
PHRca California Labor Relations and Collective Bargaining 1
Which California agency oversees collective bargaining disputes for public sector employees (excluding agricultural workers)?