Arbitrator Finds that City of Portland Violated Maintenance-of-Standards Clause When It Tried to Change Criteria for Awarding Executive Leave

An Arbitrator this week issued a decision against the City of Portland, and in favor of the Portland Police Commanding Officers Association (PPCOA). For many years, PPCOA members received an “executive leave” benefit as their only compensation for hundreds of hours of overtime required of all PPCOA members, who are not covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act. The City negotiated an increase in the executive leave benefit, but as soon as the contract was settled, the Mayor directed the Chief of Police to implement a new policy which raised the criteria needed to qualify for the benefit. The City claimed that the automatic award of executive leave was inconsistent with the contract standards. The PPCOA grieved the change, claiming that the new policy violated the maintenance-of-standards clause.
The Arbitrator ruled that the contract language was ambiguous, and that under the maintenance-of-standards clause the City could not unilaterally change the policy without the PPCOA’s consent. The City now must bargain over the change, and the contract is settled for the next four years. The City was ordered to restore the benefit to those who lost it because of the new policy. BHMK Attorney Hank Kaplan represented the PPCOA in this matter.