Court Rules That County Can Force Use of Sheriffs' Accrued Vacation Time

A California appeals court has ruled that the County of Los Angeles (County) can force peace officer employees to use excess deferred vacation time in order to avoid a year end cash payout for that time. In Association for LA Deputy Sheriffs v. County of Los Angeles (2007) __ Cal.App.4th __, construed the relevant provisions of the Los Angeles County Code and a memoranda of understanding (MOU’s) between the County and the bargaining unit for the sheriffs, and affirmed a trial court determination that the County does have the managerial power to force the use of deferred vacation time.

The trial court held that the County has “the management right to set the terms and conditions of its employees, including, but not limited to, the management right to require plaintiffs and petitioners herein to take off accrued vacation under the California Constitution, applicable California laws, and the charter of the County of Los Angeles . . . .” The employees argue that the County’s forced vacation policy violates their right under the County Code to receive a cash payout for excess deferred vacation hours and impermissibly divests them of a valuable employment benefit under Bonn v. California State University, Chico (1979) 88 Cal.App.3d 985 (Bonn) and Kistler v. Redwoods Community College Dist. (1993) 15 Cal.App.4th 1326 (Kistler). We disagree. The employees interpret both their rights and the prevailing cases too broadly. The cases on which the employees rely are inapposite because they concern vacation benefits already vested, while the benefits at issue here are prospective. Furthermore, we agree with the court’s characterization in Los Angeles County Prof. Peace Officers’ Assn. v. County of Los Angeles (2004) 115 Cal.App.4th 866, 872 (Los Angeles County Prof. Peace Officers) of the County’s excess vacation buy-back policy as not granting any rights to employees, but rather limiting the amount of vacation time that can be accrued.

For a time, you will be able to download the full opinion in Association for LA Deputy Sheriffs v. County of Los Angeles here in pdf or word format.