An employee filed an unfair charge against his city-employer, claiming the city violated the Meyers-Milias-Brown Act (MMBA). The employee alleged harassment, being singled out, and possibly threatened by a supervisor. But the employee did not identify any facts that concerned any of the labor-relations matters under the jurisdiction of the Public Employment Relations Board (PERB).
PERB’s General Counsel noted that the charge contained time-barred allegations and did not include any of the elements necessary to state a case subject to PERB’s jurisdiction. The General Counsel issued the employee a warning letter that the charge would be dismissed if the employee did not include facts regarding MMBA-protected activities, such as discrimination because of labor activities, or interference with the employee’s labor activities. The employee amended the charge twice, but never alleged any MMBA-protected labor activities.
LCW attorneys highlighted both the untimeliness of the employee’s allegations and the employee’s failure to state a MMBA claim. PERB’s General Counsel ultimately dismissed the employee’s charges entirely on both grounds that LCW highlighted in the city’s position statement.