In a case of first-impression nationally, the New Hampshire Public Employee Labor Relations Board (PELRB) recently found that the Town of Derry committed an unfair labor practice by refusing to engage in impact bargaining prior to installing GPS tracking equipment and dashboard cameras in police cruisers. NPH attorney Peter Perroni represented the Derry Police Patrolmen’s Association. While noting that the Town had a managerial right to use the technology, the PELRB held that “the Town did commit an unfair labor practice on account of its failure to bargain the impact of this managerial decision on the terms and conditions of employment of bargaining unit employees.”
The Board ordered the Town to immediately engage in bargaining to address, among other issues, employee privacy concerns, procedures concerning use and maintenance of data, use of data in employee discipline. The Board’s decision provides a good practical starting point for unions to analyze how GPS and other technology might impact other mandatory subjects of bargaining.
A copy of the decision is posted on the PELRB website and is available by clicking the link below.
Click the Link below to read the Board’s Full Decision:
http://www.nh.gov/pelrb/decisions/board/documents/2011-278.pdf.