HIDDEN VALLEY LAKE, Calif. – Disagreements over labor issues led this week to a picket by the Hidden Valley Lake Association's unionized workers, who are lodging complaints alleging unfair practices, with the association in turn arguing that the union has been unwilling to come to the table.
Early Tuesday morning a letter signed by Randy LeMoine, business manager for Local 324 of the Laborers’ International Union, notified the HVLA administration that the union was initiating an unfair labor strike in response to discrimination against golf course and maintenance employees.
The letter was hand-delivered to the offices of HVLA General Manager Cindy Spears and Human Resource Director Julie Vonada.
It accused HVLA’s employers of bad-faith bargaining and unilateral changes in terms and conditions of employment impeding the rights of employees. HVLA also received an eight-page document citing several charges of alleged infractions.
The document’s cover said that the National Labor Relations Board Region 20 director has issued a formal complaint against HVLA.
In addition, the document poses the questions, “Why is Hidden Valley Lake violating employee rights and federal law?” and “How much will the litigation costs be for Cindy Spears’ unlawful conduct?”
National Labor Relations Board records online show that Local 324 and the Northern California District Council filed charges against the Hidden Valley Lake Association on April 15 for repudiation/modification of contract and again on April 20 for coercive actions.
In January, the union filed similar complaints against HVLA with the National Labor Relations Board, as well as charges of refusing to bargain in good faith and coercive statements, the agency's records show.
More complaints of repudiation/modification of contract followed in February, along with allegations that HVLA refused to bargain in good faith and furnish information, based on the federal records search.
All of those specific January and February cases remain open, according to the National Labor Relations Board.
However, it's the association's view that the refusal to bargain in good faith and to avoid meeting is the union's issue.
In a statement issued to Lake County News, the association said the impasse between Hidden Valley Lake Association and the Laborers Union Local 324 employees “is based on the Association’s beliefs that staff equity in pay and benefits are key ingredients to a productive workforce. The Union doesn’t share that viewpoint,” which led to the call for a picket line that began early Tuesday morning.
While the union continues to picket, “staff has jumped in to supplant those duties and temporary workers have been hired to replace striking Union employees,” the statement said.
According to HVLA, a point of contention is the union’s insistence that the association pay a flat rate of $30 for mileage versus paying the standard Internal Revenue Service rate of $.55 per mile when “on-call” union employees are called into work.
“The IRS standard is the amount the association pays to its other employees for mileage reimbursement,” the statement said.
A second issue concerns health insurance. The statement said union employees and their families receive full health care benefits for $64.04 per pay period. “The association has countered that union
employees should be responsible for sharing more of the ever-rising healthcare burden.”
As a result, the association implemented a $36.04 per paycheck increase in what it said was a small attempt to level the playing field between union and nonunion employees. “The association is considering other equalization standards,” the statement said.
However, Maggie Campbell, a researcher and labor relations representative who joined picketers out front of Hidden Valley Golf Club on Wednesday morning, tells a far different story
“Back in October we were bargaining with the employer who refused to talk to us,” she said. “So we talked from then till now for some 20 odd days for them to come and meet with us and they’d say ‘Oh, no, we’re not going to meet with you.’”
Campbell indicated that the documents were only the first shot in a battle against the HVLA’s management practices.
Spears has clearly been singled out. Her office phone number has been posted on signs carried by picketers.
“I don’t know whether Cindy Spears is going to take her direction from the board (of directors) or is on her own,” said Campbell. “So far we have not been able to get board directors to talk to us.”
Campbell went on to cite an alleged Aug. 23 incident in which she said Spears “skipped the union and went directly out to try to make a deal with employees.
“She was soliciting grievances to find out ‘what’s your problem?’ and ‘how can I fix it for you?’” Campbell said.
“The message I want to send to Cindy is that this is California, not Florida,” she added. “We have labor laws in California. This is not a ‘right-to-work’ state.”
The allusion was to Spears’ former position in Florida just before moving to Hidden Valley Lake.
What is unknown and likely will remain that way is how many calls Spears has received because of the campaign to circulate her phone number.
But a member of the HVLA administration team observed that Spears receives as many supportive emails as negative phone calls.
Motorists, on the other, seem to be supportive of the picketers, as indicated by how many honk their horns.
“It’s been amazing,” said Campbell. “Back in 2008 it took us a couple of weeks to get past the negativity and to the point where folks supported us. This time with Cindy in place there is so much unhappiness and distrust by the homeowners.”
One of several charges the union has brought against HVLA is that it has created a “beautification committee” that has performed grounds keeping work normally done by union personnel.
The question is, does it perform tasks that should be done by contract employees?
“I have not seen anything from that committee that they’re not conducting our work,” said Campbell, noting they've taken photographs of them doing the work.
A more serious concern involved mechanic Todd Everhart and his wife. Everhart was accused of being on social media on a day that he took his wife to the doctor’s office for ultrasound treatment.
“I was off the job,” he said. “But when I came back from the hospital I was told I would have to leave for the day. I was suspended because I was doing social media work while on the job, which was untrue.”
Everhart said he was exonerated and called back the following day.
Over the past year, HVLA has had more than its share of strife. There has been community division over a new event center project. A board member was ousted by a partisan recall campaign. The board’s president survived a recall effort only to be voted out of office by the board. Workers also picketed last October.
Late Wednesday, Spears told Lake County News that there was nothing new to report from the association side.
There’s more to come from the union. Maybe even on Thursday, which Campbell says will provide a major development.
What’s next?
“Oh no,” she answered. “If I tell you that I lose my strategy.”
Email John Lindblom at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .