Labor Relations Commission

Chapter 554 of the Acts of 1971 (Chapter 554) created an entity within the City of Holyoke (City) to be known as the Geriatric Authority of Holyoke. In the enabling legislation the Geriatric Authority (Authority) was declared to be a municipal board of the city, with responsibility for overseeing, maintaining and operating the municipal nursing home which had therefore been operated by the City. The Authority was to consist of seven members; three appointed by the Board of Aldermen, three by the Mayor and one appointed by the original six. The Authority was granted the right, on behalf of the City and subject to appropriations, to expend funds for the construction, operation and design of a geriatric facility. The original legislation permitted the Authority to use other City agencies or departments to assist it in its operation. The City was authorized to issue bonds, in excess of normal statutory authority, to provide funds for the design, construction, and operation of the Authority. The Authority was given the power to hire employees and to enter employment contracts subject to certain limitations, including among others the collective bargaining obligations under General Laws, Chapter 149, the then-existing public sector collective bargaining statute.

Chapter 554 was amended by Chapter 199 of the Acts of 1972 (Chapter 199). Chapter 199 provided that all persons who hac previously been employed by the Holyoke Municipal Nursing Home were thereby transferred to the Authority without loss of any employment rights. One of these rights was the right to engage in collective bargaining under General Laws, Chapter 149, the then-existing public sector collective bargaining statute.

Chapter 554 was again amended in 1973 by Chapter 1097 of the Acts of 1973 (Chapter 1097). Chapter 1097 was approved on November 28, 1973 two days after the approval of Chapter 1078, now codified as General Laws, Chapter 150E, the Public Employer Collective Bargaining Law. Chapter 1097 amended Chapter 554 by creating a" public body corporate and politic to be known as the Geriatric Authority of Holyoke." (emphasis added) The act further stated that the exercise of powers conferred under it "shall be deemed and held to be the performance of essential governmental functions." The Authority continued to have the same mission and operated under a Board similarly constituted. However, the amending legislation expanded upon the powers given to the members of the Authority to include the general management and control of the nursing home. The Authority was to appoint an administrator and other employees as necessary and had jurisdiction over its own affairs. It was granted the right to enter into agreements in its name or in the name of the City. It was also given authority to call upon other departments, boards or authorities of the City for assistance in construction. The City was expected to issue bonds for construction of the Authority's facilities which were to be redeemed from revenues generated by the Authority. If revenues were insufficient to permit repayment without impinging upon operating costs, the repayment would be waived. The Authority had the right to he reimbursed by other city departments and agencies for services rendered. Other city departments charged the Authority for their services. The Authority was also given the right to enter joint vent res with the Holyoke Housing Authority for the construction of low income housing for the elderly and the handicapped. The Authority had the right to sue or be sued, to take property by eminent domain, to purchase or lease real property and to expend money for improvement of such property. It had the power to enter into contracts in its own name and to adopt such rules and regulations as it deemed necessary for its operation.

Chapter 1097 made the Authority subject to the specific provisions of the unemployment compensation statute and further provided that Authority employees were "eligible to participate in the contributory retirement system under Chapter 32 of the General Laws and the Group Insurance Plan under Chapter 328 of the General Laws, if authorized by the Authority to the same extent as if they were employees of the City of Holyoke."

The Authority maintains a Group Insurance Policy. At the time of the hearing the Authority contributed 65% to the Group Insurance Policy. Other municipal employees at the time of the hearing received only a 50% contribution from the City. Authority employees participate in the City's retirement plan. Employees at the Authority also enjoy other benefits not afforded other City employees including some free medical care and free meals while on duty. Chapter 1097 of the Acts of 1973, however, does not reference the collective bargaining responsibilities of either the employees or the Authority.

Almost all income which the Authority obtains is derived from user fees. The Authority serves clients not only from Holyoke but also from the communities surrounding Holyoke such as Springfield, Chicopee, Agawam, Westfield, Southampton, and Westhampton. It provides a broad variety of geriatric services including residential, day care, in-patient and out-patient services. These services are provided from two central facilities and two satellite facilities. It also provides a special transportation program.

None of the current employees interchange their jobs with other City employees. They are not covered by any collective) bargaining agreement to which the City is a signatory. Although the Board is appointed by the Mayor and the City Council, once appointed they establish personnel policies for Authority employees. The Executive Director is in charge of the day-to-day operations of the Authority.

The question for me to decide is whether the Geriatric Authority of Holyoke is a public employer as defined by Chapter 150E. The Authority has consistently contended that they are not. In 1981, "public employer" as found in section one of Chapter 150E was amended to include political subdivisions. Prior to the 1981 amendment, the Authority asserted that the only way the Commission could assert jurisdiction over the Authority was if there was specific statutory language mentioning it in the definition. The Authority relied on Fall River Redevelopment Authority, 4 MLC 1690 (1978). In Fall River, the Commission determined that the only way the Commission could assert jurisdiction over an authority was if the authority's enabling statute was specifically set forth in Chapter 150E. In 1981, as previously mentioned, the definition of Chapter 150E was amended to include political subdivisions as public employers. In response to Commission inquiry as to whether the amendment affected the jurisdictional issue, the Authority contended the amendment had no impact. Specifically it asserted, again, that specific statutory reference to the Holyoke Geriatric Authority was necessary before the Commission could assert jurisdiction. In addition, they contend that the Authority as it is presently constituted is not a political subdivision.

The two unions that filed representation petitions asserted that the Commission does have jurisdiction under Chapter 150E. The Massachusetts Nurses Association argued that Fall River Redevelopment Authority, supra, was wrongly decided and further argued that the facts of Geriatric Authority could be distinguished from Fall River. Local 1459, Commercial Workers Union (AFL-CIO), on the other hand, asserted that the Authority was an arm of the City of Holyoke, and as such is clearly subject to the jurisdiction under Chapter 150E. In so arguing, they reviewed they reviewed the may connections the Authority has with the City.

In response to the Commission's inquiry after Chapter 150E was amended to include "political subdivisions," the MNA asserted that the legislation effectively overruled the Commission's Fall River Redevelopment Authority decision. Local 1459 of the UFCW asserted no position on the issue.

The Commission's jurisdiction over an employer stems solely from its statutory authority. St. Luke's Hospital v. Labor Relations Commission, 320 Mass. 467, 70 N.E.2d 10 (1946). The statute involved, G.L. c.150E (the Law), limits the Commission's jurisdiction to "employees" or "public employees." "However, 'public employee' is not defined in c.150E, s.1, to include all public employees in the Commonwealth, but rather only those employees who are employed by a "public employer." Massachusetts Probation Association v. Commissioner of Administration, 370 Mass. 651, 352 N.E.2d 684 (1976). Chapter 484 of the Acts of 1981 amended the definition of employer in section one of Chapter 150E by adding:

"or other political subdivision...but excluding authorities created pursuant to chapter one hundred and sixty-one A and those authorities included under the provisions of chapter seven hundred and sixty of the acts of nineteen hundred and sixty-two."

In past cases, authorities have been excluded under both chapters 150A and 150E absent specific legislation. See, e.g., Fall River Redevelopment Authority, 4 MLC 1690 (1978). Section 2(2) of Chapter 150A excludes only two employers from its scope: "the commonwealth or political subdivisions thereof." Authorities have been held to fall with the political subdivisions" exclusion. Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority v. Labor Relations Commission, 356 Mass. 563, 254 N.E.2d 404 (1970). Chapter 150E, Section 1, defined employer as "the commonwealth acting through the commissioner of administration, or any county, city, town or district." In cases such as Fall River Redevelopment Authority, supra, we have held that authorities do not fall within that definition and that absent specific legislation the Commission has no jurisdiction.

"A State-created authority is a 'hybrid entity, possessing attributes both of a private corporation and of an executive agency of the Commonwealth.'" Woods Hole v. Martha's Vineyard Commission, 380 Mass. 785, 797, 405 N.E.2d 961, 969 (1980) quoting from Department of Community Affairs v. Massachusetts State College Building Authority, 378 Mass. 418, 425, 392 N.E.2d 1006, 1010 (1979). The Court at another point likened authorities to "municipal corporations." Woods Hole, supra, at 800. There is no doubt that an authority is a political entity. The question, however, is whether the Geriatric Authority is a political subdivision for the purposes of the collective bargaining law.

The National Labor Relations Board has held that a political subdivision encompasses entities which are "either created directly by the State, or administered by individuals who are responsible to public officials or to the general public." The City Public Service Board of San Antonio, 197 NLRB 312, 314 (1972). See also, NLRB v. National Gas Utility District, 402 U.S. 600, 77 LRRM 2348 (1971). A review of the various statutes that created the Holyoke Geriatric Authority demonstrate unequivocably that the Authority is a political entity independent of the City of Holyoke and a separate political subdivision within the definition of Chapter 150E.

Membership of the Geriatric Authority consists of seven members, three appointed by the Board of Aldermen, three by the mayor without confirmation and one by the other six members. Chapter 554 Section 3. Members may be removed by cause by the vote of Aldermen. Chapter 554 Section 3. The Authority has the power to sue and be sued. Chapter 554, as amended, Section 8(a) and (b). The Authority may acquire property by eminent domain or by purchase, or gift. Chapter 554 as amended, Section 8C. "[T]he Board itself has recognized that authority to exercise the power of eminent domain weighs in favor of finding an entity to be a political subdivision." NLRB v. Natural Gas Utility District, supra at 2351. It may enter into contracts in its own name. Chapter 554 as amended, Section 8(1). The Authority by statute is a "public body corporate and politic" which exercise its powers in the performance of essential governmental functions. Chapter 554 as amended, Section 2. It is apparent that these above listed factors demonstrate that the Authority is a political subdivision.

Moreover, the enacting statutes for the Authority demonstrate that its status as a political subdivision is independent of the City of Holyoke. Specifically, and most importantly, the Authority receives no funding from the City of Holyoke. Its revenues come from fees charged for services. Its budget is formulated and approved by its own Board of Directors. In addition, the Authority makes a payment to the City of Holyoke in lieu of taxes. Chapter 554 as amended, Section 10B. Finally, employment policies are set by the Board of Directors and are not subject to review by the City. In this regard, the enacting legislation stated, "[t]he Authority is empowered to employ ana fix compensation of...such other employees...as it may deem necessary or incidental to the performance of its duties and the execution of its powers under this Act. Section 8j. These are just a few of the provisions that demonstrate the Authority's autonomy in day-to-day operations and its labor relations.

The recent amendment to section one of Chapter 150E was intended to include authorities. The amendment added to the definition of "employer" the words "other political subdivisions." If the legislature did not intend such to include authorities, then why did it also add specific exclusions of certain of them? In my view, the legislature intended the amendment to include authorities generally, subject to specific exclusions; the Holyoke Geriatric Authority does not fall within the enumerated exclusions.

The words used in the amendment are plain. Chapter 150A excludes "political subdivisions" and 150E now includes them. To argue that those words mean one thing when used in defining employer under 150A and another when used to define employer under 150E is absurd. "[A] statute must be interpreted according to the intent of the Legislature ascertained from all of its words construed by the ordinary and approved usage of the language, considered in connection with the cause of its enactment, the mischief or imperfection to be remedied and the main object to be accomplished, to the end that the purpose of its framers may be effectuated." (citation omitted). Department of Community Affairs v. Massachusetts State College Building Authority, supra, 378 Mass. at 427, 392 Mass. N.E.2d at 1011.

In conclusion, the Holyoke Geriatric Authority is a political subdivision as set forth in the definition of public employer in Chapter 150E.

[1] 402 CMR 13.13 regulates the appeal of hearing officer decisions.

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