San Francisco City & County Service Employees International Union v. City & County of San Francisco

Opinion

LAZARUS, J.* Plaintiff William A. Slater was employed at the San Francisco General Hospital prior to October 26, 1970, with a civil service job classification as a “2801 -Community Health Aide.” A few days before that date another employee, Cyrus Carter, who was classified as a “2120-Institutional Admitting Officer” had resigned from his position. The salary for his job was $288 per month more than the rate of pay for a health aide.

Before Carter left his job, there were two members of the hospital staff classified as admitting officers. On October 3, 1970, after Carter had notified the hospital that he intended to leave, a request from the hospital personnel office for leave to fill this vacancy was denied because the position had not been funded and the job was declared “frozen.” However, on October 26, 1970, Slater was assigned by his superior, George Szol, senior management assistant, county mental health clinic, to perform the duties of a 2120-Institutional Admitting Officer. Ever since that date he continued to perform the duties of the higher position in obedience to the orders he had received from his boss.

Appellant San Francisco City and County Service Employees International Union Local 400, AFL-CIO, of which Slater was a member, wrote to the civil service commission on February 2, 1971, requesting that Slater be paid the salary of an admitting officer, to be retroactive covering the period commencing 30 days after he assumed such duties, and continuing until July of 1971, when he was regularly promoted to his permanent position as a 2120-Institutional Admitting Officer. Although the commission did issue an order on December 27, 1971, purporting to [275]grant this request, respondent Dr. Francis Curry, as head of the department of public health, refused to budget the item, and respondent Nathan A. Cooper, the City and County Comptroller, refused to pay it. Hence, Local 400 thereafter joined with Slater in petitioning the superior court for a writ of mandate seeking to command the city to pay to Slater the added compensation that he seeks in this action. This appeal is from the lower court’s judgment entered on November 9, 1973, denying the petition.

The sole question presented here is therefore as to whether or not Slater has a legally enforceable claim for back pay.

Appellants base their claim largely on section 7 of rule 24 of the rules and regulations of the civil service commission, adopted pursuant to the rule-making powers conferred on the commission by section 141 of the Charter of the City and County of San Francisco. They earnestly contend that rule 24 entitled Slater to the full pay of an admitting officer while performihg the duties of that office, since he performed the functions pertaining thereto for a period longer than 30 days under the directions of his superior officer.