Report on San Diego Meet and Confer On DMV Record Pulls

There was a meet and confer at San Diego last Thursday, May 22, over a change in when/how the campus pulls the DMV records of employees. Here is a bargaining report summarizing the background, CSUEU's concerns, our proposal, and the CSU's response, written up by Brian Young, the CSUEU Labor Relations Representative (LRR) assigned to San Diego State University. This report was sent to the bargaining team and has been verified as not confidential, so you may share it with your chapter stewards and anyone else interested in a look at the meet and confer process. This is the text of the report; we link to a nice printable PDF copy below.

BARGAINING REPORT: SDSU DMV PULL PROGRAM

Session of May 22, 2008

Background

The DMV pull program provides employers with monthly reports of actions against an employee’s driver’s license. This includes traffic citations, tickets for registration and insurance, convictions, etc. This program is mandatory for certain employees – Class A license holders and Class C license holders who transport other people (paratransit, shuttle, etc.) – and discretionary for employees who operate vehicles for the employer on a frequent basis.

CSU vehicle use regulations require a valid driver’s license and good driving record (three or less moving violations) for employees who operate University vehicles or private vehicles on the University’s behalf. A Defensive Driver Certificate is required if the employee will operate a vehicle more than once per month.

San Diego State University practice was to require Defensive Driver training for anyone who either operated a University vehicle or who planned to request mileage reimbursement for travel or who took Defensive Driver training (some employees took the training purely to lower their insurance rates). All of these employees were placed in the DMV pull program. At one time, it appears that enrollment was done without notification of the employee, although that practice has stopped and employees are now asked to sign the DMV waiver form.

Union Concerns

Status quo – Changes in wages, hours or working conditions require notification of the Union and an opportunity to bargain. This applies even if the changes are mandated by law (as is the case for the mandatory category of drivers under DMV). Many employees covered by the SDSU practice are not required to be included in the DMV pull program by statute. The Union insists on its right to bargain on the basis of the status quo ante – the conditions prior to the implantation of the program. We are willing to delay any charge pending negotiations and a settlement of the issues.

Privacy – The DMV pull program provides a great deal of information to the employer and includes actions which take place apart from University employment. While the University has a reasonable expectation of a valid driver’s license and good record from employees who normally operate motor vehicles, it does not have this same interest for employees who are not required to operate vehicles or who make infrequent mileage claims. Even for those employees who fall under the program, we want to make sure that the information is limited to those managers who require access.

Job requirements – Employees who have vehicle operation as part of their duties can be held accountable for maintaining a driver’s license and maintaining a good driving record. Other employees who are not required to operate vehicles for their positions should not be subject to this requirement.

Application of statute and policies – The DMV pull program and its statutory authority is only required for Class A and specific Class C operators employed by the University. The Union understands that these employees must be enrolled, although we still have the right to bargain over the effects of enrollment. The DMV allows enrollment for non-mandatory drivers for the employer, but they are required to be frequent drivers. The Union has the right to bargain over their inclusion or exclusion in the program. For infrequent or non-operators, the DMV does not allow enrollment and the University errs in applying the program to anyone who takes Defensive Driver training.

Union Proposal

The Union proposed settlement of the issues by the following:

• Notice to employees who have been enrolled in the program of the past practice and new changes.
• Limitation of the DMV pull program to mandatory operators and frequent operators of vehicles on University business. Frequent means more than onceper month every month.
• Defensive Driver training will still require verification of valid driver’s license but not enrollment in the DMV pull program.
• Ending enrollment for infrequent or non-operators.
• Opportunity to withdraw from the program if the driver changes their status from mandatory or frequent operator to infrequent or non-operator.
• Written clarification of the access and security procedures for DMV information.
• Written clarification that the DMV pull program does not apply to equipment which is operated on the grounds of the campus, such as forklifts and mowers, although it does apply to electric carts in cases such as shuttle drivers.

University Response

The University did not object to the proposed changes and will draft an agreement. That draft will be reviewed by management on the campus and then sent to Dennis Dillon (Chief Spokesperson) and Brian Young (Chief Negotiator). The parties intend to complete the review and sign-off within thirty days.

CSUEU Bargaining Team	CSU Bargaining Team
Dennis Dillon – Chief Spokesperson Lynn Barba – BUC 2 Sharon Cunningham – BUC 5 Annel Martin – BUC 7 Rich McGee – BUC 9 Mark Flahan – Chapter Vice President Sherry Velthuysen – Chapter Treasurer Tessy Reese – Chapter BUR 2 April Webster – Chapter BUR 7 Brian Young – Chief Negotiator	Sharyn Abernatha – Chief Negotiator Debbie Richardson – SDSU Campus Police

If you have concerns about how your campus handles DMV record access, please talk to your Bargaining Unit Representative, chief steward and chapter LRR.

Links

• Bargaining Report: Meet and Confer over San Diego DMV Pull Policy [PDF]
• DMV Employer Pull Notice (EPN) Program (California Department of Motor Vehicles)
• Request for temporary waiver of defensive driving certificate & entry into the employee DMV pull program (SDSU campus form, version dated 10/01/07) (San Diego State University) [PDF]
• DMV information supplied to bargaining team: Copy of DMV EPN program information page and copy of the Request for temporary waiver of defensive driving certificate & entry into the employee DMV pull program dated 08/01/07 [image PDF]
• Bargaining 101