Page 21 - December 2020

tional Union v. Misco, Inc.; and Eastern Associated Coal Corp. v. United Mine Workers of America, Dist. 17.
SCOTUS has long recognized a public policy favoring court def- erence to labor arbitration decisions rendered under a collective bargaining agreement. As SCOTUS explained in Steelworkers v. Enterprise Wheel & Car Corp., “The federal policy of settling labor disputes by arbitration would be undermined if courts had the final say on the merits of the awards.” Even if an arbitrator were to give no explanation for an award, the courts would still owe deference to an arbitration decision. Notwithstanding this defer- ence, SCOTUS has made it clear that awards which violate public policy may not be enforced. However, as stated in W.R. Grace, “the public policy exception is narrow” and “courts should approach with particular caution pleas to divine further public policy in that area.” Therefore, such a public policy must be well-defined and dominant and is to be ascertained “by reference to the laws and legal precedents and not from general considerations of sup- posed public interests.”
In reviewing its decision in W.R. Grace, SCOTUS later explained: “Two points follow from our decision in W.R. Grace. First, a court may refuse to enforce a collective bargaining agreement when the specific terms contained in the agreement violate public pol- icy. Second, it is apparent that our decision in that case does not otherwise sanction a broad judicial power to set aside arbitration
awards as against public policy.”
SCOTUS requires that “examination of whether the award cre- ated any explicit conflict with other ‘laws and legal precedents’ rather than an assessment of ‘general considerations of supposed public interest.’” Thus, as SCOTUS explained, “[a]t the very least, an alleged public policy must be properly framed under the ap- proach set out in W.R. Grace, and the violation of such a policy must be clearly shown if an award is not to be enforced.” To that end, SCOTUS stated, “[a] refusal to enforce an award must rest
on more than speculation or assumption.” SCOTUS particularly faulted the appellate court for engaging in additional fact-find- ing, explaining that an inquiry “into a possible violation of public policy” does not “excuse a court for doing the arbitrator’s task.”
Most recently, SCOTUS explained that “we must treat the ar- bitrator’s award as if it represented an agreement between [the employer] and the union as to the proper meaning of the” agree- ment. Ultimately, SCOTUS concluded that “[t]he award violates no specific provision of any law or regulation.”
Similarly, Illinois purports to limit the scope of the public-pol- icy exception to the enforcement of labor arbitration awards as well. In American Federation of State, County & Municipal Em- ployees v. Department of Central Management Services (AFSCME), the Illinois Supreme Court likewise opined, “Courts have crafted a public policy exception to vacate arbitral awards which oth- erwise derive their essence from a collective-bargaining agree- ment.” The AFSCME court relied heavily on SCOTUS’s decisions in W.R. Grace and Misco, as well as other federal appellate court decisions, to recognize and establish the public-policy exception under Illinois law. Notwithstanding its stated intent to uphold the standards set forth in W.R. Grace and Misco, Lodge 7 asserts that the Illinois Supreme Court’s decision in its case expands the public policy exception to enforcement of arbitration awards in a way that wrongfully disregards the court’s limited role in review- ing arbitration awards and excuses the City from adhering to the contract it agreed to without first bargaining with the Lodge for changes. A bad precedent, if left unchallenged.
Although we have no timetable in knowing when SCOUTS may rule on the Lodge’s petition, the City has until Dec. 16, 2020 to file a response. We will keep you posted.
In the meantime, 2020 has been a challenging year. Wishing all the active and retired men and women of the Police Department a safe, happy and prosperous holiday season!
CHICAGO LODGE 7 ■ DECEMBER 2020 21