Ridgefield Park Education Association, Plaintiff-Respondent v. Ridgefield Park Board of Education, Defendant-Appellant

Summary

The Supreme Court of New Jersey held that teacher transfers and reassignments are not mandatory negotiable terms of employment and that the 1974 amendment to the Employer-Employee Relations Act did not create a permissive category of subjects subject to collective bargaining. Consequently, the contractual arbitration provision covering such transfers is invalid and the lower court's order compelling arbitration was reversed and permanently enjoined. The Court also issued procedural guidance on the respective roles of PERC, the courts, and arbitrators. Justice Confoed, in a concurring opinion, agreed with the injunction but based his reasoning on a different interpretation of legislative intent.