City of Brookfield v. Wisconsin Employment Relations Commission

Wisconsin state law imposed on public employers an obligation to bargain collectively. In November 1972, the city of Brookfield (the city) (defendant) reduced the fire department’s budget as part of its budget-reduction plan. The city council asked department heads for proposals on how the budget reductions could be dealt with. The fire chief suggested layoffs. Members of Local 2051 (the union) (plaintiff), a union representing firefighters in the city, were aware of the pending layoffs and attempted to prevent them with a large-scale campaign. During a contract bargaining session, the union asked to discuss the issue of severance pay for the five firefighters who were about to be laid off, but a city representative only stated that it would have to be considered by the city’s finance committee. In December 1972, the city notified five firefighters that they would be laid off. At a bargaining conference five days later, a city representative informed the union that there would be no unemployment benefits offered and the city would not be bargaining on the issue, explaining that it was a city management prerogative. The firefighters were laid off without any discussion regarding the decision or the impact and implementation of the layoffs. The union filed an unfair-labor-practice complaint with the Wisconsin Employment Relations Commission (WERC). WERC ordered the city to reinstate and reimburse the firefighters, finding that the city ignored its duty to bargain collectively under state law. The circuit court reversed in part and affirmed in part the WERC order, finding that the city was not obligated to negotiate the layoff decision but was obligated to negotiate the effects of the decision. The latter issue was not appealed. The union appealed with respect to the former issue.