Opinion: Elected officials can stand with striking workers — no matter what the L.A. city attorney says (via latimesopinion)
The city attorney’s office misinterprets a 1986 U.S. Supreme Court decision,. In that case, the city council refused to renew the city’s franchise agreement with a taxicab company because the company was involved in a labor dispute with its drivers. The court ruled that the National Labor Relations Act prohibited the city from putting coercive pressure on the parties to settle the strike. In a subsequent decision, the court found the city was liable for damages sought by the taxicab company.
But the Golden State Transit cases do not remotely support the city attorney’s conclusion. Those cases involved the city as an entity pressuring a private company to settle a strike or lose its city contract. It has nothing to do with individual elected officials expressing their views, including their support for picketing workers. The speech of individual council members is not the same as the city threatening to terminate a contract and trying to force an end to a strike.
In its memo, the city attorney’s office also expressed concern that if council members show up on picket lines or rally with demonstrators, they might have to recuse themselves from voting on a related issue in the future. “Participation in such activities by multiple members may affect council’s ability to meet quorum on matters involving the union or the employers and could expose the city to liability,” the memo said.
This is just wrong. Elected city officials are allowed to voice their views, including on matters that will ultimately come before them for a vote. They are not like judges who are expected to refrain from expressing public positions on issues. There are conflict of interest rules for city council members, but none of them indicate that there is any problem with elected officials taking positions. Nor could that be objectionable. Elected officials are expected to express their positions — both in running for office and while serving — on the matters that will come before them.
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