Labor - Management Relations 353
in no event shall the right of any employee to run as a candidate for or
to hold elective offi ce be deemed to be within the scope of negotiation
[Massachusetts General Laws Annotated, Chapter 150E, Section 6].Notice that this law requires negotiation over standards of perfor-
mance and productivity, and class size and workload for teachers, as well
as the more standard issues. Some states, such as Nevada, are even more
explicit in defi ning and articulating mandatory subjects.
Permissive Topics A permissive topic is a matter related to optional policy
that may be bargained over if there is mutual agreement between labor
and management, but neither side may unilaterally insist on such bargaining.
Neither management nor labor has to bargain over permissive topics. In
many states, permissive topics of bargaining include insurance benefi ts,
retirement benefi ts, productivity bargaining, and grievance and discipline
procedures. Permissive topics in the federal sector under Section 7106
include, at the election of the agency, work projects, tour of duty, or the
technology, methods, and means of performing work. Education benefi ts
could be considered a permissive topic. Because they are not wages, hours,
or working conditions, they would not be considered mandatory topics.
However, the employer and union could elect to negotiate them.
Deciding whether an issue is mandatory or permissive has generally
been accomplished on a case - by - case basis. Administrative agencies and
the courts have devised varying and fl exible tests rather than establishing
fi xed rules. The decision is diffi cult because many issues affect both the
terms and conditions of employment and management policymaking.
Examples of this dilemma surface frequently in teaching and social work.
Teachers want to negotiate issues such as class size, curriculum, teaching
loads, and nonteaching duties and responsibilities. Social workers want to
bargain over caseload, treatment alternatives, or the process of deciding
what services are appropriate for clients. These issues address working
conditions, but they are also dimensions of management policy.
Illegal or Prohibited Topics Illegal or prohibited topics cannot be bargained,
and any agreement to bargain with respect to illegal topics will be void and
unenforceable. Instead, illegal topics typically must be resolved through the
legislative process. Examples of illegal or prohibited subjects of bargaining
at the federal and state levels are the negotiation of the organization ’ s
objectives, how the objectives should be implemented, the agency ’ s organi-
zational structure, and employment standards. Issues regarding retirement,