Florida Statutes Chapter 447: Public Employees Relations Act

The Florida Public Employees Relations Act, codified at Chapter 447, Part II of the Florida Statutes, is the law that governs how state, county, and municipal employers deal with organized workers. It sets the rules for forming a union, bargaining a contract, collecting dues, and resolving disputes, and it bans public-employee strikes outright. Because the federal National Labor Relations Act does not reach government employers, Chapter 447 is what fills that space in Florida. The Public Employees Relations Commission (PERC) is the agency that administers it.

Who the Act Covers

The Act applies broadly to anyone employed by a public employer in Florida, but several categories are carved out. You are excluded if you hold an elected position, were appointed by the Governor, serve as an agency head, or sit on a board or commission.¹ The exclusion list also covers members of the organized militia, legislative employees, inmates, PERC’s own employees, and undergraduate students doing part-time work at a state university.

Two groups get special treatment. Managerial employees are those who exercise independent judgment and either help shape policies affecting bargaining-unit workers, play a significant role in personnel administration or employee relations, help prepare for collective bargaining, or have a significant role in budget preparation.¹ Police chiefs, fire chiefs, and public safety directors are automatically managerial, and PERC can designate other officers and firefighters as managerial based on the paramilitary structure of their departments. Confidential employees are those who help formulate management’s bargaining positions or have access to confidential bargaining information.

Your Rights as a Public Employee

Florida law gives public employees the right to form, join, and participate in any employee organization. You can engage in lawful concerted activity for collective bargaining or mutual aid, negotiate through a certified bargaining agent, and have a representative with you during grievance proceedings.² Every one of those rights carries an equal right to refrain. No one can force you to join a union or participate in union activities as a condition of government employment.

You can also take a personal grievance directly to your employer without the union speaking for you. The only limits are that any resolution cannot conflict with an existing collective bargaining agreement, and the bargaining agent must get a reasonable chance to attend the meeting.²

Membership, Dues, and Right-to-Work

Florida is a right-to-work state, and Chapter 447 has detailed rules about joining and paying. To become a union member you sign and date a membership authorization form prescribed by PERC. The form must display, in 14-point type, a conspicuous statement telling you that membership and dues are voluntary and that no one may discriminate against you for joining or refusing to join.²

You can revoke your membership at any point in the year. The union has to honor a written revocation and cannot restrict it to certain dates or make the process unduly burdensome.²

Dues collection is where the rules changed sharply. Most certified bargaining agents in Florida can no longer have dues deducted from employee paychecks by the employer. Members of those unions pay dues directly to the organization. The exception is for bargaining units where the majority of eligible employees are law enforcement officers, correctional officers, correctional probation officers, firefighters, 911 public safety telecommunicators, emergency medical technicians, or paramedics. Those unions keep the right to employer-deducted dues, but individual employees can revoke the authorization with 30 days’ written notice.³ Employers are flatly prohibited from collecting fines, penalties, or special assessments on a union’s behalf.

How a Union Becomes Your Bargaining Agent

Before a union can seek recognition or appear on a certification ballot, it has to register with PERC. The registration application, filed under oath, requires the organization to disclose its officers, dues amounts, an annual financial statement prepared by an independent certified public accountant, its constitution and bylaws, and a pledge to accept members regardless of age, race, sex, religion, or national origin.⁴ Registration lasts one year and must be renewed annually.

To be certified as the exclusive bargaining agent, the union files a petition with PERC supported by signed statements from at least 30 percent of the employees in the proposed unit. PERC investigates, holds a hearing to define the bargaining unit, and orders a secret-ballot election. Election costs are split equally between the parties. If the union wins a majority of votes cast, PERC certifies it as the exclusive representative for every employee in the unit. If no choice on the ballot wins a majority, there is a runoff.⁵

The 60 Percent Recertification Threshold

A certified union whose dues-paying membership falls below 60 percent of the bargaining unit during the previous 12 months has to petition PERC for recertification when it files to renew its registration. Only employees paying full dues in good standing count toward that threshold.⁶ A union that fails to file for recertification within one month of its renewal application loses its certification, and PERC bars it from seeking certification for that unit for 12 months.

How Bargaining Works

Once a union is certified, the public employer’s chief executive (or a representative) and the bargaining agent have to meet at reasonable times and negotiate in good faith over wages, hours, and working conditions.⁷ Neither side has to agree to any particular proposal, but both must engage honestly rather than going through the motions.

Any deal must be written down and signed by both the chief executive and the bargaining agent. The signed document is still not binding on its own. It takes effect only after the public employer and a majority of the voting bargaining-unit employees ratify it.⁷ If either side rejects it, the negotiators go back to the table.

Even after ratification, agreements that cost money need funding. The chief executive has to ask the legislative body to appropriate enough to cover the agreement. For statewide units, if the Legislature appropriates less than the full amount, the contract is administered based on whatever was actually funded, and underfunding is not an unfair labor practice.⁸ If a provision conflicts with a law the chief executive lacks power to change, the executive has to propose the amendment to the appropriate governmental body, and that provision stays dormant until the amendment passes.

When Negotiations Break Down

Either party can declare an impasse in writing to the other side and to PERC. The parties can then jointly appoint a mediator.⁹ If no mediator is appointed or mediation fails, either side can ask PERC to appoint a special magistrate. The parties can agree on who that is; if they cannot, PERC chooses.

The special magistrate holds hearings, takes evidence under oath, and issues a recommended decision within 15 calendar days after the final hearing. Each recommendation is deemed approved unless a party files a written rejection with PERC within 20 calendar days, stating the reasons.⁹ Anything left unresolved goes to the public employer’s legislative body for a final decision. The parties can also agree in writing to skip the special magistrate and go straight there. When the Governor is the public employer, no mediator or special magistrate is appointed and the dispute goes directly to the Legislature.

Grievances Under a Contract

Every public employer and bargaining agent has to negotiate a grievance procedure for disputes over how the contract is interpreted or applied. The procedure must end with final and binding resolution by an impartial neutral the parties pick together.¹⁰ The arbitrator can interpret the contract but cannot add to it, subtract from it, or change its terms.

All public employees are entitled to a fair grievance procedure regardless of union membership, but a certified union is not required to process grievances for non-members. Career service employees get a choice of forum: the civil service appeal procedure, an unfair labor practice charge, or the contractual grievance procedure. You cannot pursue more than one for the same dispute.¹⁰

Unfair Labor Practices

Chapter 447 holds both employers and unions to roughly symmetrical standards of fair dealing. A public employer violates the Act by interfering with or coercing employees exercising their organizing or bargaining rights, by encouraging or discouraging union membership through discrimination in hiring or employment terms, or by dominating or financially supporting the formation of an employee organization.¹¹ Refusing to bargain in good faith, refusing to sign a final agreement, refusing to discuss grievances under the contract, and retaliating against employees who file charges or give testimony are also violations.

Unions are prohibited from coercing employees in the exercise of their rights, including the right to refrain from union activity. A union cannot try to cause an employer to discriminate against a worker based on membership status, refuse to bargain in good faith, or retaliate against anyone who files a petition or testifies.¹¹ They are specifically barred from instigating or supporting a strike and from soliciting support for union activities from K-12 or college students.

The Strike Ban

The Florida Constitution states that public employees do not have the right to strike.¹² Chapter 447 enforces that prohibition. No public employee or employee organization may participate in, instigate, or support a strike in any way.¹³ A “strike” covers any concerted refusal to report for duty, any willful work stoppage, and any slowdown or coordinated sick-out meant to pressure an employer.

Penalties on an offending union are severe. PERC can issue cease-and-desist orders, suspend or revoke the union’s certification, and revoke its right to dues deduction. PERC may fine the organization up to $20,000 for each calendar day of the strike, or alternatively calculate the approximate daily cost to the public and set the fine at that amount, even if it exceeds $20,000 per day.¹⁴ Those fines go to the public employer to replace the services lost. A union found in violation cannot be recertified until a year after it pays all outstanding fines.

Courts can enjoin a strike. If the union does not promptly comply, the circuit court initiates contempt proceedings, with court-imposed contempt fines capped at $5,000 and separate from PERC fines. The union is also liable for any damages the public employer suffers, and the court can enforce those judgments by attaching union initiation fees or dues.¹⁴

1
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 447.203 – Definitions
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The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 447.301 – Public Employees Rights; Organization and Representation
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Florida Senate. Florida Code 447.303 – Dues; Deduction and Collection
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Florida Senate. Florida Code 447.305 – Registration of Employee Organizations
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Florida Senate. Florida Code 447.307 – Certification of Employee Organization
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Florida Senate. Florida House of Representatives Final Bill Analysis – HB 995
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The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 447.309 – Collective Bargaining; Approval or Rejection
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Florida Senate. Florida Code 447.309 – Collective Bargaining; Approval or Rejection
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The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 447.403 – Resolution of Impasses
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The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 447.401 – Grievance Procedures
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The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 447.501 – Unfair Labor Practices
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FindLaw. Florida Constitution 1968 Revision Art I, Section 6 – Right to Work
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The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 447.505 – Prohibited Strikes
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Florida Senate. Florida Code 447.507 – Violations; Penalties