Page 18 - February 2018 FOP Newsletter

Repeat offender
ALJ once again finds that City violated the law
On the heels of a Nov. 8, 2017 decision, the ad- ministrative law judge (ALJ) issued another recommended decision and order (RDO) involving the City’s illegal expansion of the
body worn cameras (BWC), once again highlighting how the City continues to violate state labor laws. With formal nego- tiations barely underway, the City has been told for a second time that it is not above the
law. (Can anyone else see a pattern here?)
On Jan. 2, just a few days into this new year, the ALJ found
that the City violated the State Labor Act again when it failed and refused to bargain over the effects of the BWC Pilot Pro- gram’s 2017 expansion. The ALJ went on to note that the City “made a material change to employees’ terms and conditions of employment when it instituted the BWC Pilot Program be- cause the BWC impact employee discipline, safety, and pri- vacy.”
The ALJ did not buy the City’s argument that a recently passed statute — the Law Enforcement Officer-Worn Body Camera Act — preempted the parties’ obligations to engage
in effects bargaining. On the contrary, the applicable state law (the “Illinois Public Labor Relations Act”), as explained
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FOP
Labor Report
by the ALJ:
...specifies that other laws that pertain, in part,
to matters that impact terms and conditions of employment “shall not be construed as limiting the duty to bargain collectively.” It further provides that parties may enter into agreements “that supplement, implement, or relate to the effect of such provisions in other laws.” Here, the Union is entitled to bargain greater protections for its members than those conferred by the
[Law Enforcement Officer-Worn Body Camera Act].
The Lodge has repeatedly challenged the City’s unlawful actions from the inception of the letter of understanding (“LOU”) over the pilot program for the BWC. At first, the City was restricted to use the BWC with officers in the 14th Dis- trict. The LOU contained some significant protections:
• The Department will comply with the parties’ collec- tive bargaining agreement concerning use and review
18 CHICAGO LODGE 7 ■ FEBRUARY 2018