The Union claimed that the City and the FDNY violated NYCCBL § 12-306(a)(1), (4), and (5) by unilaterally implementing a procedure known as the 1:12 rule that denied unit members the ability to use their accrued annual leave. Alternatively, if the 1:12 rule were found to be a nonmandatory subject of bargaining, the Union argued that the City was required to bargain over its practical impact on terms and conditions of employment. The City argued that the grant or denial of leave falls within its management rights, that there was no change in policy, that the Union did not establish any practical impact, and that the claim should be deferred to the grievance procedure. The Board found that the 1:12 rule constitutes a mandatory subject of bargaining but that the Union did not meet its burden of establishing a change from existing policy. Having found that the 1:12 rule was a mandatory subject of bargaining, the Board also denied the Union’s request for impact bargaining. Accordingly, the petition was dismissed.

14-OCB2d-11-BCB-2021--with-Dissenting-Opinion.pdf