County orders union boss to work, citing new law

Clark County management has ordered Martin Bassick, president of the Service Employees International Union Local 1107, to report for work at a county job in a move that reflects the county’s interpretation of a new state law concerning paid leave for union representatives.

The county’s human resources department notified Bassick in a letter Thursday to report at his county public works job at 8 a.m. Monday, according to correspondence obtained by the Review-Journal. The letter cites a bill that the Legislature passed this session and Gov. Brian Sandoval signed into law. An attorney for the SEIU, the county’s largest union, disputes the county’s interpretation of the law and has requested negotiations with the county to resolve the matter.

Bassick confirmed Monday that he reported to his job as a plans checker for public works as instructed, speaking to a Review-Journal reporter while on his lunch break.

“I just received this letter out of the blue,” Bassick said, adding that no one from the county talked to him before he received it.

County spokeswoman Stacey Welling declined to comment Monday.

Under the county’s contract with the SEIU, the union president is allowed to be on full-time paid leave from his county job to focus on union-related duties. During that time, the county covers the union president’s paycheck and benefits. It’s standard practice that other public-sector unions and local governments follow in Southern Nevada to one degree or another, granting paid leave not only for presidents but also for the part-time work of other union officials.

Examples include paid leave for union stewards and employees who travel to conferences and legislative events. Such leave is included in collective bargaining agreements that specify the type of leave and number of hours allowed.

Paid union leave for Clark County added up to $346,200 in 2013, a figure that includes employees affiliated with the SEIU and the International Association of Firefighters Local 1908. Those costs are spread across 115 employees, ranging from union leaders who spend much of their time on labor matters to county employees who spend just hours on union-related activities such as grievances.

Senate Bill 241 changed that system, leaving a couple other options. Under the new law, if an employee goes on paid leave for union-related work, the labor organization must reimburse the government employer for that pay. Another option is for the government employer to provide paid union leave, but only after the union makes a concession during contract negotiations that’s financially equal to the costs of the leave.

The legal question now between Clark County and the SEIU is if the existing provisions of the contract allowing paid union leave continue until the the next contract is negotiated. The current agreement between the SEIU and the county was reached in 2012 and extended through June 30, 2013.

But the contract continues year-to-year unless the parties agree to change or terminate it. Bassick said that hasn’t happened and the county and union still work under the contract, which includes other provisions such as time off and procedures for hiring and terminating employees. The county and SEIU started negotiating a new contract in 2013, and have been unable to reach terms for a new contract.

In a letter to the county Friday, SEIU attorney Michael Urban said the county’s letter demanding Bassick’s return to the county workplace is “unreasonable,” and that nothing in the legislation applies to existing agreements.

In a Monday memorandum to County Manager Don Burnette about the application of the new law to the SEIU, county attorney Mary-Anne Miller wrote that the contract’s provision for continuing year-to-year is trumped by an “interim agreement” that the two parties reached in 2013 that gave employees a 2 percent cost-of-living increase. Her memo, obtained by the Review-Journal, noted it’s “not merely a change to a current agreement.”

The county’s move also applies to union stewards, who typically break from their county jobs to deal with grievances on a part-time basis as needed.

Commission Chairman Steve Sisolak said he’s aware of the issue, noting it’s a legal issue based on a new law that will need input from attorneys.

Bassick said he’ll be meeting with county management about the issue — after he gets off work at 5 p.m. Monday. He said he’s hopeful the union and county can resolve their differences.

Contact Ben Botkin at bbotkin@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2904. Find him on Twitter: @BenBotkin1