A recent report from the New Jersey Office of the State Comptroller reveals that Jersey City is out of compliance with the New Jersey Employer-Employee Relations Act filing requirements. Under EERA, enacted in 1968, public employers—both municipalities and school districts—are required to file their employee labor contracts with the New Jersey Public Employment Relations Commission. Since 2010, PERC also has been required to publish the contracts on its website.According to data from PERC, Jersey City’s municipal contract expired in 2020, making it out of compliance. The Jersey City School District’s most recent contract expired in 2023, which OSC does not consider out of compliance. OSC based its findings of non-compliance on data through the end of 2021 to highlight the school districts and municipalities that have been out of compliance for at least two years. (The rate of non-compliance would have been even higher if it considered data through 2023.)Overall the report found that 64% of 586 school districts and 27% of 488 municipalities failed to provide copies of current union contracts to PERC as of the end of 2021.In 2010, 97% of municipalities and 87% of school districts complied, according to OSC.“The posting of union contracts on PERC’s website is an important tool for New Jersey residents, unions, and the government,” Acting State Comptroller Kevin D. Walsh said in a statement. “By law, taxpayers are supposed to have immediate access to this information. PERC’s website provides a free way for local governments to meet their transparency obligations. It is disappointing and surprising that more of them are not complying with the law.”In its report, OSC also stated that there is no enforcement mechanism to compel compliance with the EERA, limited awareness among local governments of the law’s filing requirement, and limited outreach by PERC to remind local governments of their obligations.OSC made several recommendations, including that PERC should consider using its rulemaking authority to establish an enforcement mechanism that would encourage compliance.In a letter to David B. Bender, Esq., OSC’s Legal Affairs and Audit Specialist, PERC Chair Mary E. Hennessy-Shotter stated, “When PERC receives an inquiry about a contract that is not on the website, an email is sent to the respective business administrator requesting compliance with the filing requirements.”She also asserted that, “PERC does not have regulatory authority to craft an administrative enforcement and/or penalty mechanism” for employers that do not comply, but if the Legislature amended the EERA to grant it such authority, it would do so.For more details, you can access the full report here.The post Jersey City Fails to Comply with Union Contract Transparency Rule appeared first on Jersey City Times.