BA requesting DMV records

freyh8

We suspended a driver because he now has 3 moving violations on his motor vehicle record which disqualifies him from driving a company vehicle (per our company policy and our insurance company's parameters he is uninsurable). The union business agent has requested information for the arbitration including "driving records for all employees of all operations owned and/or operated under our company name". Only two of our locations are covered under the collective bargaining unit agreement. Do we have to comply with this request? For all operations? When I request DMV records, I sign the request form stating that it is for use by us to obtain information relating to a holder of a CDL or to verify information to a holder of a (state) drivers license for employment use of company vehicles.

marc

I don't know much about union situations, but your post indicates the disqualification is per company policy and insurance company requirements. It sounds like they are looking to see if you are administering this policy consistently for all EEs. How unreasonable is it to produce the records for all EEs that drive for the company? If it is a significant volume, perhaps you can ask to more narrowly define the request?

Crout

First, if you are going into arbitration you should engage a good labor attorney and run this situation by him/her. But I would probably tell them that you are prepared to disclose the sheer numbers of employees, who were suspended for similar offenses, but that you are bound by issues of confidentiality not to release DMV records for specific individuals. Again, after discussing it with the attorney, I'd throw that out and see how they respond. In my conversations with the BA, I would also ask what use they would have for the records. If the parameters are set by your insurance company they could change overnight (and do in my experience), so I would fully expect to see variations in how the policy is enforced.

WT

You do have a duty under arbitration rules to produce records that you might have which will permit the union to prepare a case. However, driving records from a state motor vehicle department are not company records. I would offer the union records kept on a company database or in personnel files. If the union wants individual driving records that the company does not have, I would tell them to get such records from their members.

freyh8

Thank you WT. I run driving records twice a year, and so yes I do have them for all employees who drive a company vehicle- sales, managers, DOT drivers- union and non-union. Am I obligated to provide these records even for our employees who are not covered under the collective bargaining unit? Isn't that an unlawful disclosure?

Don D

Although you have no obligation to provide records that belong to the DMV, once you have copies of them in your files, those copies are arguably company records and may have to be produced to the union. If I were you, I would run this by your attorney before going to all the trouble of rounding up this stuff.....and before deciding to tell them NO.

My union experience tells me that you have absolutely no obligation to provide any record on persons not covered by the Bargaining Agreement. Not only is that information and those files not subject to the terms of the CBA, there could not be used for comparison. The contract speaks for itself as to how you may discipline covered employees. How you might discipline others is a moot point. But, I wold hope, for the sake of the business, it is virtually the same.

WT

The union has a right to ask for records in order to prepare an arbitration case. They would certainly have a right to member's records that you have. Clearly, their issue would be finding disparity of treatment to allege to the arbitrator. You may refuse records of those not in the union. If the union wants to make a point that others (perhaps in management) are being treated differently, they may ask for a subpeona from the arbitrator. You then would have to fight that subpeona. Here the issue would be company stance. For example, if you say that a person with no license cannot continue to work for you, have you done otherwise with those in the management. If so, could treatment afforded to them be extended to union members.

mrbill

Had a somewhat similar situation when 3 out of the 4 EE's who drove the Company vehicles were not insurable, by the Companies carrier. Since this was a minor part of their duties, we were able to keep them employed. In this process, we learned that our chief driver did not have a license at all. My sense is that if you have the records, then you have to offer them, but only for BU members. As others have suggested - run this by an Attorney.