Council approves amended ordinance on arbitration of labor disputes after weeks of debate
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Summary
After extended debate and public comment from union representatives, the Memphis City Council approved an amended ordinance setting a process for resolving impasses over economic items in labor negotiations; an amendment offered by Councilman Smiley that reduces the middle arbitrator step and emphasizes mediation passed 7–3.
The Memphis City Council on March 24 approved an ordinance to prescribe how impasses over economic items in city labor negotiations are handled, adopting an amendment that emphasizes mediation and shortens the middle arbitrator step.
Attorney Wade, who helped draft the proposal, told the council the ordinance is intended to produce comparable economic packages so the council can make an informed decision. "The charter requires us to prescribe by ordinance a procedure for arbitration of economic items only," Wade said, adding the measure is meant to present the administration’s and associations’ economic proposals in a comparable form so the council can decide.
Councilman Smiley offered an amendment that, he said, reduces the role of a three-person arbitration panel and gives more weight to mediation and a single arbitrator if mediation fails. "So I move the amendment and then let the body do what the body decides to do," Smiley said. After debate, the council approved Smiley’s version by a roll-call vote: Canali, Ford, Smiley, Espinosa, Walker, Warren and the chair voted yes; Cooper Sutton, Logan and White voted no (7–3).
Councilwoman White urged support for the original draft, arguing an impartial arbitrator provides a clearer path. "The arbitrator is clean. It's a sink. It gets us where we need to, with a very clear path," she said, urging the council to adopt the original approach rather than the amended version.
Jani Webster, representing Communication Workers of America Local 3866, urged clarity in the ordinance’s language so it would not be interpreted to block creation of new bargaining units or employee associations. "We are a bit concerned about specific language in the ordinance that could be interpreted ... to prevent the creation of new bargaining units," Webster said during public comment.
Attorney Wade responded to those concerns, saying the measure is not intended to prohibit formation of bargaining units and that the Hackett executive order provides an existing process for elections and recognition. "The executive order by Mayor Hackett sets a process by which employees may create bargaining units, not prohibits," Wade said.
The ordinance as amended requires the administration and employee associations to exchange targeted economic information, offers a mediation step, and—if mediation fails—routes conflicting packages to a single reviewer who compiles them into a comparable form for the council. Supporters said the change streamlines the process and helps the council compare fiscal impacts; opponents said it reduces procedural clarity.
The council passed Smiley’s amendment and the ordinance as amended. The council did not record additional implementation dates in the meeting record; the administration’s budget presentation (the mayor’s budget is due April 14) will be the next trigger for the new process being implemented.
