Bill would reverse SJC’s ‘evergreen’ decision

A supplemental budget bill filed by the governor on Aug. 25 includes a provision that would essentially reverse a Supreme Judicial Court decision and allow “evergreen” clauses in public-sector collective bargaining contracts.

Last October, the SJC ruled that state law (Ch. 150E) is clearly written to “limit the term of a collective bargaining agreement to not more than three years.” Evergreen clauses, which provide that all terms of a contract are in force until a new contract is signed, are therefore invalid, the court found.

The court wrote that the limitation “serves several important and beneficial purposes.” The court also noted that, under Section 9 of Chapter 150E, the parties to a collective bargaining agreement are still able to agree to “bridge agreements” to preserve contract terms while negotiations for a new contract are ongoing.

Section 6 of the governor’s budget bill would amend Chapter 150E, the state law governing public-sector collective bargaining, to state that a collective bargaining agreement may remain in effect until a new one is reached. The language would make the provision retroactive, meaning that many local personnel decisions made since the SJC ruling could be subject to appeals or grievances following arbitration procedures in previously expired contracts.

The MMA is asking the Legislature to reject Section 6. In a letter to legislative leaders, the MMA argues that the proposal “would be extremely disruptive and costly to many cities and towns throughout Massachusetts.”

“Retroactively reinstating evergreen provisions would be enormously disruptive,” the MMA wrote, “as all previous management decisions during this time, including disciplinary and administrative actions, layoffs and hiring decisions, and more, could be subject to retroactive appeals and costly arbitration or court action.”