By ACACIA RODRIGUEZ

Fans of the textbook “Lefkowitz on Public Sector Labor and Employment Law” will be pleasantly surprised to see contributions from two DC 37 Legal Department staffers in Chapter Three: Employee Rights Under The Taylor Law and Chapter Six: The Representation Process.

Assistant General Counsel Terry Buck and Seth York poured their practical knowledge into the updated “labor law bible,” as it’s known to familiar readers. The whopping two-volume, $500 text is used as a reference to guide attorneys practicing law in the public sector within academic, union, and municipal legal departments.

DC 37’s legal staff is uniquely qualified for this task. Previously, Associate Counsel Audrey Browne, who currently serves as a consultant for the DC 37 Benefits Fund Trust, co-edited a supplementary update to the 1998 edition.

“We are taking our rightful place in history in doing this,” said Robin Roach, DC 37 General Counsel. “Our staff should be contributors to anything with regard to public sector labor law in this state because we have a lot to say. District Council 37 represents over a thousand titles from accountants to zookeepers. Very rarely would you find that breadth of representation in one organization.”

Roach and Browne expressed excitement that newer members of the Legal Department are continuing the tradition of updating the labor law bible as a guide for the legal community when protecting members’ rights.

The Legal Department is attuned to major developments within labor law. Major cases are easy to recall in routine proceedings but for less common issues, Lefkowitz’s text is the gold standard.

“Anytime you come up with a labor law legal question that you don’t immediately know the answer to, you pick up Lefkowitz as a start,” York said. “It’ll give you the keywords or interpretations of relevant cases and help orient you in further legal research. We have two copies of it at this office, and we’re constantly asking each other, ‘Who has Lefkowitz?’”

For the newest update, Buck and York researched new legal precedents that would affect disciplinary cases, out-of-title work assignments, and unfair labor practices. They scoured dozens of cases to detail changing rules and standards.

“A treatise like this is really helpful in cases when legal departments need the most current information,” Buck said. “When figuring these things out on your own, you’re often doing research for hours on a website like Lexis to find a case that answers your questions, and that can waste a lot of time.”

The DC 37 Legal Department’s work to support members’ rights in litigation qualifies its attorneys to contribute to these highly regarded legal texts.

Much of the work conducted by the Department is focused on grievance arbitration, disciplinary proceedings, and out-of-title cases. Counsel works alongside other union staff to navigate the arbitration process so members are supported and their jobs are protected.

“For out-of-title cases, we’re seeking to have the member promoted into whatever position they’re doing the work for and back pay for the period they’ve been doing that work,” Buck said. “If it’s not a higher paid position, then we aim for a cease and desist to get that work to stop so  members are not expected to do more than they are paid to do.”

For those with a penchant for the latest in labor law developments, consult the New York Bar Association for the release details of the latest edition of “Lefkowitz on Public Sector Labor and Employment Law.” To have a copy personally signed by Buck and York, or for any disciplinary issues stemming from employment, speak to the DC 37 Legal Department at 125 Barclay St.