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Light Duty 11-2 leave if they are capable of performing in a light duty capacity. Presumably the full Commission will clarify this issue at the appropriate time. However, the results reached by Hearing Officers will probably not change, only the reasoning. If an employer has traditionally allowed public safety employees to remain on 111F leave until able to perform all the duties to which they might possibly be assigned, notice and an opportunity to bargain will be required before such 111F eligibility criteria are changed or, more properly, before assigning such partially disabled employees to a light duty position. A more logical approach would be for the Commission to recognize the employer's right to create a light duty position and to require a municipal employer to provide notice and an opportunity to bargain, if the union so requests, before assigning bargaining unit members to such duty for the first time. It is arguable that the creation of a light duty assignment is no different from creating such positions as prosecutor, planning officer, school liaison officer, training officer, records officer or desk officer. In fact, some departments utilize exactly those assignments when requiring a partially disabled (sick or injured on duty) employee to return to work. With this approach, a <strong>Management</strong> <strong>Rights</strong> clause which allows for the creation of such positions as the employer deems necessary or appropriate, should encompass a light duty position which involves duties reasonably expected of police officers or firefighters. Changing the shift of those on leave under § 111F requires notice and, if requested, bargaining with the affected union. This was the decision reached by an LRC Hearing Officer in a 1991 case involving the Natick Police Department. 5 In that case the Acting Police Chief issued a memorandum which altered the department's past practice of allowing officers who were on injured on duty leave to remain administratively on the shift to which they had been assigned at the time of their injury. Officers on 111F leave were reassigned administratively to the 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. shift. Among other things, this change was intended to eliminate eligibility for night shift differential. PRACTICE POINTERS So long as the employer meets its bargaining obligations (e.g., notice and opportunity to bargain) and does not violate a specific provision of the collective bargaining agreement, it could adopt a policy of administratively reassigning all sick or injured (on and off duty) employees to the day shift. The reassignment of injured or even sick employees to the day shift may also result in other benefits. For example, should the employee be required to be examined by a municipally-designated physician, to report to the station for a conference with the chief, or to attend a court hearing on Commonwealth of Massachusetts
Light Duty 11-3 behalf of the department, the employer's exposure to a claim for call-back pay might be reduced or eliminated. The Hearing Officer in Natick did not question the Acting Chief's authority or ability to make the administrative reassignment, only the failure to meet the municipality's impact bargaining obligation. It is possible that regular (i.e., contract) bargaining, rather than impact or mid-term bargaining, may be required where the collective bargaining agreement contains some restriction on management's ability to move employees from one shift to another. § 1 DOCTOR’S CERTIFICATES Under certain circumstances, a municipal employer may require a doctor's certificate as a condition of an injured employee being placed on sick or injury leave, continuing on such leave, and/or returning to work in either a light or full-duty capacity. With the exception of strike or job action situations discussed above, the lack of cases in this area makes any listing of guidelines speculative. An early Hearing Officer decision involving the Boston Police Department upheld the ability of the Police Commissioner to issue a Special Order directing the commanding officers to require certification for all employee absences of five days or more, or where the absences exceeded ten days in a year. 6 This action was taken after the Commissioner became concerned about the amount of sick leave being taken by police officers. The Hearing Officer held that the Department rule, giving the Commissioner discretion to require a physician's certificate, had been incorporated into the collective bargaining agreement. Therefore, the Commissioner was not changing a condition of employment, but exercising the discretion which was part of the conditions of employment. The fact that he had rarely exercised that discretion in the past did not indicate that the power had been abandoned. PRACTICE POINTERS In the absence of any controlling provision in the collective bargaining agreement, an employer is free to provide the union with notice of its intention to require a doctor's certificate as a condition for sick leave eligibility. Assuming the union demands bargaining, the employer must engage in good faith negotiations until either agreement or impasse is reached (whereupon the change may be implemented). Massachusetts Municipal Police Training Committee
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PREFACE Municipal officials and dep
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INTRODUCTION Public safety unions h
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Table of Contents ii § 2 Entry-Lev
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Table of Contents iv § 8 Other Ben
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Management Rights 1-2 management ri
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Management Rights 1-4 organized pub
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Management Rights 1-6 arbitrate a d
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CHAPTER 2 - SCOPE OF ARBITRATION Mu
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Scope of Arbitration 2-3 There are
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Scope of Arbitration 2-5 Northborou
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Scope of Arbitration 2-7 DiSciulo
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Scope of Arbitration 2-9 leniency o
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Scope of Arbitration 2-11 20 Masach
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Subjects of Bargaining 3-2 When a p
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Subjects of Bargaining 3-4 § 2 NON
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Subjects of Bargaining 3-6 each new
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Subjects of Bargaining 3-8 47 Whitm
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CHAPTER 4 - “GOOD FAITH” Both t
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Good Faith 4-3 A. REFUSAL TO NEGOTI
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Good Faith 4-5 When a contract is i
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Good Faith 4-7 assignments an inher
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Good Faith 4-9 A union's obligation
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Good Faith 4-11 employees' terms an
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Good Faith 4-13 3) Contractual Waiv
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Good Faith 4-15 impasse is reached
Page 52 and 53: Good Faith 4-17 1 Harwich School Co
Page 54 and 55: Good Faith 4-19 59 Commonwealth of
Page 56 and 57: Assignment 5-2 Despite the fact tha
Page 58 and 59: Assignment 5-4 condition of re-issu
Page 60 and 61: CHAPTER 6 - PROMOTIONS The promotio
Page 62 and 63: Promotions 6-3 list is due to expir
Page 64 and 65: CHAPTER 7 - APPOINTMENTS The appoin
Page 66 and 67: Appointments 7-3 providing the unio
Page 68 and 69: Appointments 7-5 entry-level wage o
Page 70 and 71: Appointments 7-7 union requests bar
Page 72 and 73: CHAPTER 8 - BARGAINING UNIT WORK A
Page 74 and 75: Bargaining Unit Work 8-3 private se
Page 76 and 77: Bargaining Unit Work 8-5 § 1 REMED
Page 78 and 79: Bargaining Unit Work 8-7 2) Absence
Page 80 and 81: Bargaining Unit Work 8-9 33 Safeway
Page 82 and 83: Reorganization 9-2 the work is supe
Page 84 and 85: Reorganization 9-4 bargaining unit
Page 86 and 87: Reorganization 9-6 If the union dem
Page 88 and 89: Reorganization 9-8 41 See Commonwea
Page 90 and 91: Sick and Injury Leave Rules 10-2 Wh
Page 92 and 93: Sick and Injury Leave Rules 10-4 §
Page 94 and 95: Sick and Injury Leave Rules 10-6 wh
Page 96 and 97: Sick and Injury Leave Rules 10-8 Up
Page 98 and 99: Sick and Injury Leave Rules 10-10 P
Page 100 and 101: Sick and Injury Leave Rules 10-12 1
Page 104 and 105: Light Duty 11-4 § 2 INJURED ON DUT
Page 106 and 107: Light Duty 11-6 1 Votour v. City of
Page 108 and 109: Defibrillators 12-2 they affect gre
Page 110 and 111: CHAPTER 13 - WORKPLACE RULES AND PR
Page 112 and 113: Workplace Rules and Practices 13-3
Page 134 and 135: Changing Schedules 14-2 § 1 CONTRA
Page 136 and 137: Changing Schedules 14-4 legitimate
Page 138 and 139: CHAPTER 15 - MINIMUM STAFFING The n
Page 140 and 141: Minimum Staffing 15-3 that “a min
Page 142 and 143: Minimum Staffing 15-5 1 Chapter 594
Page 144 and 145: Benefits, Compensation and Leaves 1
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Benefits, Compensation and Leaves 1
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Employee Performance 17-2 The emplo
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Employee Performance 17-4 compellin
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Employee Performance 17-6 37 See se
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APPENDIX A-2 SAMPLE NOTICE FORM (OP
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APPENDIX A-4 SAMPLE NOTICE FORM (OP
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APPENDIX A-6 SAMPLE FORM 5 SAMPLE D
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APPENDIX A-8 6. The employee to be
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APPENDIX A-10 CONSENT I agree that
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APPENDIX A-12 to maintai
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