Opinion ID: 1943531
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Scope of Act 195

Text: Section 401 of Act 195, 43 P.S. § 1101.401, sets forth the rights of public employes:  Employe rights It shall be lawful for public employes to organize, form, join or assist in employe organizations or to engage in lawful concerted activities for the purpose of collective bargaining or other mutual aid and protection or to bargain collectively through representatives of their own free choice and such employes shall also have the right to refrain from any or all such activities, except as may be required pursuant to a maintenance of membership provision in a collective bargaining agreement. Public employes are defined as follows: As used in this act:       (2) `Public employe' or `employe' means any individual employed by a public employer but shall not include elected officials, appointees of the Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate as required by law, management level employes, confidential employes, clergymen or other persons in a religious profession, employes or personnel at church offices or facilities when utilized primarily for religious purposes and those employes covered under the act of June 24, 1968 (Act No. 111) . . . Act 195, § 301(2), 43 P.S. § 1101.301(2). Public employer is defined in § 301(1), 43 P.S. § 1101.301(1): As used in this act: (1) `Public employer' means the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, its political subdivisions including school districts and any other officer, board, commission, agency, authority, or other instrumentality thereof and any nonprofit organization or institution and any charitable, religious, scientific, literary, recreational, health, educational or welfare institution receiving grants or appropriations from local State or Federal governments but shall not include employers covered or presently subject to coverage under the act of June 1, 1937 (P.L. 1168), as amended, known as the `Pennsylvania Labor Relations Act,' the act of July 5, 1935, Public Law 198, 74th Congress, as amended, known as the `National Labor Relations Act.' Thus, court reporters of Philadelphia enjoy the rights set forth in Section 401 of Act 195 if they are employed by a public employer within the meaning of Section 301(1) of Act 195. Appellants have the power to hire, discharge, and direct the work of their court reporters, see Costigan v. Local 696, AFSCME, 462 Pa. 425, 434, 341 A.2d 456, 461 (1975), and therefore an employment relationship exists between appellants and their court reporters. Id.; see Sweet v. Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board, 457 Pa. 456, 322 A.2d 362 (1974) ( Sweet I ). [3] Appellants contend, however, that they are not public employers within the meaning of Section 301(1) and that the Legislature's failure to mention the unified judicial system in Section 301(1) and Act 195's assertedly ambiguous scope, demonstrate at least an arguable legislative intent not to include courts under the Act. [4] Appellants believe that we should therefore invoke the canon of statutory construction favoring a narrow reading to avoid perceived constitutional infirmities. See 1 Pa.C.S.A. § 1922(3) (Supp. 1977). The Legislature, in its recent amendment to The County Code, [5] has resolved any doubt concerning the scope of Section 301(1) of Act 195. Section 1620 of The County Code now provides:  Salaries and Compensation The salaries and compensation of county officers shall be as now or hereafter fixed by law. The salaries and compensation of all appointed officers and employes who are paid from the county treasury shall be fixed by the salary board created by this act for such purposes: Provided, however, That with respect to representation proceedings before the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board or collective bargaining negotiations involving any or all employes paid from the county treasury, the board of county commissioners shall have the sole power and responsibility to represent judges of the court of common pleas, the county and all elected or appointed county officers having any employment powers over the affected employes. The exercise of such responsibilities by the county commissioners shall in no way affect the hiring, discharging and supervising rights and obligations with respect to such employes as may be vested in the judges or other county officers. (1976 amendment emphasized). This amendment authorizes county commissioners to act as the managerial representative in proceedings under Act 195 involving court personnel, without in any way interfering with the supervisory authority of the courts. Ellenbogen v. County of Allegheny, 479 Pa. 429, 388 A.2d 730 (1978); Sweet v. Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board, 479 Pa. 449, 388 A.2d 740 (1978) ( Sweet II ); Bucks County Board of Judges v. Bucks County Commissioners, 479 Pa. 457, 388 A.2d 744 (1978). By designating county commissioners as the managerial representative for judges, the Legislature has made clear that it intended Section 301(1) to include judicial employees, even without express reference to the unified judicial system. Based on this recent amendment to The County Code, we must conclude that appellants are public employers for purposes of determining coverage of Act 195, thus entitling Philadelphia court reporters to enjoy the benefits of Act 195. See § 401, 43 P.S. § 1101.401.