The "Duty of Fair Representation" is an established legal principle developed in a series of cases heard by the United States' Supreme Court which holds that a union in the exercise of its exclusive right to enforce a collective bargaining agreement must treat all members of the bargaining unit equally and fairly.
The first principle of the Duty of Fair Representation (DFR) is that in processing grievances the union may not discriminate between members and non-members of the union. Further, the union may not discriminate against members or non-members on the basis of race, creed, sex, political belief, or opposition to the elected leadership of the local union or in PEF's case, Division.
The second principle established under the doctrine of DFR is that the union is responsible for making a thorough investigation of a bargaining unit member's complaint. Thus, never be too quick to dismiss a case. Rather, conduct a full investigation in every instance.
The third principle of DFR is that the bargaining agent PEF, can be held responsible for negligent acts in enforcing the contract and processing grievances which may cause a member of the bargaining unit loss of benefits or work status under the contract. The case which established this principle involved a local union which failed to file a first step grievance within the time limits of their grievance procedure.
Failure to fulfill the Duty of Fair Representation (DFR) may render the Union subject to civil suit and liable for damages by the bargaining unit member or members who may feel that they have not been adequately represented. Although such suits are costly and time consuming, it is best to realize that DFR is an advantage to the union and its grievance representation in that it provides an additional incentive to do an honest and effective job in making the collective bargaining agreement a living document that brings justice and equity to the workplace.