California School Employees Association, Chapter 296 (Morrison) (PERB 1415EA)

STATE OF CALIFORNIA
DECISION OF THE
PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS BOARD
MICHAEL MORRISON,
Charging Party,
V.
CALIFORNIA SCHOOL EMPLOYEES
ASSOCIATION, CHAPTER 296,
Res ondent.
Case No. LA-CO-835-E
Request for Reconsideration
PERB Decision No. 1415
PERB Decision No. 1415a
March
	16,
	2001
Appearance: Michael P. Calof, Attorney, for Michael Morrison.
Before Amador, Baker and Whitehead, Members.
DECISION
BAKER, Member: This case comes before the Public Employment Relations Board
(Board) on a request by Michael Morrison (Morrison) that the Board grant reconsideration
of
California School Employees Association, Chapter 296 (Morrison) (2000) PERB Decision
No. 1415 (CSEA (Morrison)). In CSEA (Morrison), the Board dismissed the unfair practice
charge, which alleged that the California School Employees Association, Chapter 296 (CSEA)
breached its duty of fair representation in violation of section 3544.9 of the Educational

Employment Relations Act (EERA)1. Additionally, the charge alleged that CSEA violated
section 3543.6(b).2
After reviewing the entire record in this case, the Board hereby denies the request for
reconsideration.
DISCUSSION
Reconsideration requests are governed by PERB Regulation 32410.3 PERB Regulation
32410(a) states:
(a) Any party to a decision of the Board itself may, because of
extraordinary circumstances, file a request to reconsider the
decision within 20 days following the date of service of the
decision. An original and five copies of the request for
reconsideration shall be filed with the Board itself in the
headquarters office and shall state with specificity the grounds
claimed and, where applicable, shall specify the page of the
record relied on. Service and proof of service of the request
pursuant to Section 32140 are required. The grounds for
requesting reconsideration are limited to claims that: 	(1) the
decision of the Board itseif contains prejudicial errors of fact, or
(2) the party has newly discovered evidence which was not
1 EERA is codified at Government Code section 3540 et seq. EERA section 3544.9
provides:
The employee organization recognized or certified as the
exclusive representative for the purpose of meeting and
negotiating shall fairly represent each and every employee in the
appropriate unit.
2 EERA section 3543.6 provides, in relevant part:
It shall be unlawful for an employee organization to:
(b) Impose or threaten to impose reprisals on employees, to
discriminate or threaten to discriminate against employees, or
otherwise to interfere with, restrain, or coerce employees
because of their exercise of rights guaranteed by this chapter.
3 PERB regulations are codified at California Code of Regulations, title 8, section
31001 et seq.
2

previously available and could not have been discovered with the
exercise of reasonable diligence. A request for reconsideration
based upon the discovery of new evidence must be supported by a
declaration under the penalty of perjury which establishes that the
evidence: (1) was not previously available; (2) could not have
been discovered prior to the hearing with the exercise of
reasonable diligence; (3) was submitted within a reasonable time
of its discovery; (4) is relevant to the issues sought to be
reconsidered; and (5) impacts or alters the decision of the
previously decided case.
Morrison seeks reconsideration of the Board's decision in CSEA (Morrison) based on a
claim that only through a hearing would he be able to prove his allegations that CSEA
breached its duty of fair representation owed to him. In each of three challenges labeled as
"exceptions" to the Board's decision in CSEA (Morrison), Morrison simply reargues matters
previously presented and rejected by the Board in CSEA (Morrison).
In reviewing requests for reconsideration, the Board has strictly applied the limited
grounds included in the regulation, specifically to avoid the use of the reconsideration process
to reargue or relitigate issues which have already been decided. (Redwoods Community
College District (1994) PERB Decision No. 1047a.) In numerous request for reconsideration
cases, the Board has simply declined to reconsider matters previously offered by the parties
and rejected in the underlying decision. (California State Employees Association, Local 1000
(Janowicz) (1994) PERB Decision No. 1043a-S.)
As Morrison's request for reconsideration merely restates the grounds for his earlier
appeal, we decline to reconsider the matters previously considered in CSEA (Morrison).
3

ORDER
Michael Morrison's request for reconsideration of the Board's decision in California
School Employees Association, Chapter 296 (Morrison) (2000) PERB Decision No. 1415 is
hereby DENIED.4
Members Amador and Whitehead joined in this Decision.
4 Morrison's request for oral argument before the Board is also denied.
4