§ 2-612. [Employer/employee relations; labor organizations; and other terms and conditions of employment.]

(a)

The City of Mishawaka does recognize that all city employees including working foreman but excluding all elected officials and appointed management and supervisory personnel do have the right to organize into city employee organizations with or without outside affiliations. The provisions of this section shall apply only to full-time employees and shall not apply to part-time or temporary employees. A full-time employee is one who is scheduled to work no less than 30 hours per week and is employed on a yearly basis. All other employees shall be considered part-time or temporary employees.

(b)

These city employee organizations have the right to freely bargain collectively with the appointed department management on all matters pertaining to employee relations and conditions of employment.

(c)

Any and all agreements developed and concluded under subsection (b) must be submitted to the Common Council of the City of Mishawaka for its approval in ordinance form.

(d)

Any and all agreements developed and concluded under subsection (b) and submitted to the common council for its approval under subsection (c) are neither binding nor final until the Common Council of the City of Mishawaka makes the final decision on these agreements.

(e)

Neither the Common Council of the City of Mishawaka nor any of its elected officials is subject to subsection (b) of this section to the abdication of his authority or lawful responsibility given or assigned to him by statute, law, and the Constitution of the State of Indiana and the United States of America.

(f)

Recognition of city employee organizations will be made by election upon written request to each member of the Common Council of the City of Mishawaka, provided that 51 percent of the acceptable employees as defined in this section concur that this organization is acceptable.

(1)

The election itself and the conducting of the election shall be directed by the ordinance committee of the Common Council of the City of Mishawaka, or its designee. This committee, subject to the approval of the full common council, shall establish the time and place of the election and prepare the ballots which shall include, in addition to the names of the employee organizations, the caption "No Recognition", shall establish secrecy of the ballot, count the ballots, and issue their committee report of the election results in writing to the Common Council of the City of Mishawaka at its next meeting following the election.

(2)

Recognition of any city employee organization will be only accorded and granted to those organizations receiving 51 percent of the votes, coming only from those eligible to vote as defined as acceptable employees in this section.

(3)

After the ordinance committee of the Common Council of the City of Mishawaka has conducted an election in the acceptable manner as defined in subsection (f)(1), and for an acceptable unit or department of city government, it shall not consider the matter again for one year. Each election shall require the full provisions of subsection (f) of this section.

(g)

A recognized employee organization shall have the exclusive right to represent the employees of an appropriate unit or department of city government.

(h)

Employees of any unit or department of city government shall have the right, freely and without fear of reprisal, to form, join, and assist in the activities of the employee organizations of their choosing for the purpose of meeting and negotiating with the executive branch of the city and/or its designated representatives with respect to wages, terms, and other conditions of employment, and each employee shall be protected in the exercise of this right. Nothing in this section shall make it mandatory for every employee of any unit or department of city government to belong to recognized employee organizations as a condition of employment. Each and every employee has the right to refrain from such membership without fear of reprisal from either the employee organization or the unit or department of city government.

(i)

Any and all strikes are prohibited under this section. In the event of a work stoppage of any kind by the members of an employee organization, it shall be the duty of the Mayor of the City of Mishawaka as its chief executive officer to notify the city attorney as its chief legal officer to apply within 24 hours of such work stoppage to a court of competent jurisdiction for an injunction against the employee organization and its elected officers for such violations of this subsection.

(j)

(1)

Any employee organization and its officers which violate subsection (i) shall lose all right of recognition immediately after 24 hours of work stoppage. No election for employee organization recognition shall be held for six months after decertification of the employee organization.

(2)

Any employee engaging in a work stoppage of any kind shall be dismissed immediately for engaging in the work stoppage. Any employee absent for more than 24 hours during any work stoppage shall present himself to the medical doctor chosen by the executive officer of the City of Mishawaka to determine the medical cause for his absence from his job during the work stoppage. All costs from this medical examination shall be borne by the City of Mishawaka.

(k)

If any provision of this section or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is invalid, such invalidity shall not affect the other provisions or applications of this section, which can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end, the provisions of this section are declared to be severable.

(l)

Nothing in this section is intended to prohibit or modify the existing right of the City of Mishawaka to:

(1)

Direct the work of its employees;

(2)

Hire, promote, demote, transfer, assign, and retain employees in positions within the city;

(3)

Suspend or discharge employees for proper cause;

(4)

Maintain the efficiency of government operations;

(5)

Relieve employees from duties because of lack of work or for other legal and legitimate reasons;

(6)

Take action as may be necessary to carry out the mission of the agency or department in emergencies; and

(7)

Determine the methods, means, program, and personnel by which such operations are to be carried on.

(Ord. No. 5249, §§ 1—12, 2-15-2010)

Editor's note

Sections 1—12 of Ord. No. 5249, adopted Feb. 15, 2010, did not specify manner of inclusion; hence, codification as § 2-612 was at the discretion of the editor.