California State Personnel Board v. California State Employees Ass'n, Local 1000

The California Constitution establishes that permanent appointments and promotions in state service shall be made solely on the basis of merit. In light of this constitutional imperative, we conclude the Legislature may not approve collective bargaining agreements requiring that state employers make such appointments and promotions based solely on the seniority status of candidates meeting all eligibility requirements, including the requisite ranking after a competitive examination in nontransfer cases, without allowance for comparative merit evaluations of those candidates.

Factual and Procedural Background

The Department of Personnel Administration (DPA) represents the Governor of California in collective bargaining negotiations with representatives of state employees in civil service. (Gov. Code, §§ 3517, 19815.4, subd. (g); all further statutory references are to this code unless otherwise specified.) The California State Employees Association (CSEA) is the exclusive elected representative for state employees in bargaining unit 1 (professional, administrative, financial, and staff services), unit 4 (office and allied staff), and unit 11 (engineering and scientific…