City of Chicago v. Fraternal Order of Police, Lodge 7; Policemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association, Units A, B, & C; and the Illinois Labor Relations Board, Local Panel

Summary

The Illinois Appellate Court, First District, reviewed the Illinois Labor Relations Board’s decision concerning the City of Chicago’s COVID-19 vaccination policy for police personnel. The court concluded that the Board abused its discretion by failing to defer to grievance arbitration proceedings addressing the policy’s implementation and effects, and it also found clear error in the Board’s determination that the City unlawfully failed to provide requested information. The court therefore reversed the Board’s final decision and order.

Holdings

1. The Board abused its discretion by refusing to defer the unions’ effects-bargaining claims to arbitration because the arbitrator had considered the contract issues and factual matters underlying both the policy’s implementation and its effects.
2. The arbitration award was not clearly repugnant to the Act because the arbitrator’s conclusion that the policy’s implementation methods were inseparable from the policy itself was not palpably wrong as a matter of law.
3. The Board clearly erred in finding that the City committed unfair labor practices based on its responses to the unions’ information requests.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the Illinois Labor Relations Board abused its discretion by refusing to defer the unions’ effects-bargaining unfair labor practice claims to grievance arbitration under the Spielberg/Olin framework.
2. Whether the arbitration award was clearly repugnant to the purposes and policies of the Illinois Public Labor Relations Act.
3. Whether the Board clearly erred in finding that the City committed unfair labor practices by inadequately responding to the unions’ information requests.

Disposition

reversed