Can an elected city councilor publicly lambaste a union to the point of telling union members they should decertify and leave their union?

The Oregon Employment Relations Board says "No!" — and issued an edict to the City of Lebanon ordering it to cease and desist just such action.

This story began in January 2011, when the city was bargaining with members of both AFSCME Local 2043, which represents general city employees, and Teamsters Local 223, which represents Lebanon's police officers. Local 2043 President Richard Nelson and Local 223 President Greg Burroughs co-authored a letter to the city, urging the city council to consider eliminating the positions of assistant city manager/human resources manager and human resources assistant before laying off other city front-line staff, or making any cuts in salary or benefits to their represented employees.

The union presidents' letter led to a response from Lebanon City Councilor Margaret Campbell. But Campbell didn't write to Nelson and Burroughs, she wrote to the local newspaper, the Lebanon Express, addressing her missive to all citizens of the city.

Campbell's letter talked about the duties and need of HR personnel, then went on to quote federal statistical information about AFSCME and the Teamsters before offering personal negative critiques of unions in general. She then unloaded this paragraph:

• "To employees of the city and other organizations imprisoned by the dictatorship of a union, as a private citizen I advise you to seek out the Department of Labor website where you can find instructions on how to de-certify your union captors. As an individual and former union member I believe you can put your dues to better use in your own household budget and in supporting causes that truly express your own values."

The Express published a follow-up article simply about Campbell's letter, noting that Campbell planned to read it at an upcoming city council meeting and that the letter was available on the newspaper's website.

The unions filed an Unfair Labor Practice (ULP) charge against Campbell and the city, noting that bargaining unit members were hurt, offended or angered by the statements in the letter. Moreover, union members became fearful of engaging in any sort of concerted public activity to protest the city's actions, as Campbell's letter caused a detrimental impact on labor relations and employee morale.

The ERB ruled for the unions, finding the city in violation of state law prohibiting public employers or designated representatives from interfering with, restraining or coercing employees in or because of the exercise of rights guaranteed under the Oregon Public Employees Collective Bargaining Act (PECBA).

The city argued Campbell sent the letter as a private citizen; ERB didn't buy it. Campbell signed the letter "Margaret A. Campbell, City Councilor, Ward II." ERB noted that, "In this environment, a member of the city council, the group with ultimate authority to make budget decisions, tells employees they should find out how to decertify their 'union captors.' Bargaining unit members who read the letter might reasonably feel obligated to follow Campbell's suggestions and reject the union, hoping to receive better treatment from the city council if they did."

The ruling also noted that First Amendment free speech protections were not violated, because the city, as an entity, does not have free speech rights as do private individuals — playing back on the ERB's ruling that Campbell's letter constituted an action from the city, not from her as a private party.

ERB ordered the city to "cease and desist" such action, and required it to post a notice of violation prominently in all buildings and facilities where city bargaining unit employees work. A copy of the ERB notice is attached to this article in PDF format.