Massachusetts General Laws
Chapter 150e - Labor Relations: Public Employees
Section 7 - Collective Bargaining Agreements; Term; Appropriation Requests; Provisions; Legal Conflicts, Priority of Agreement; Review of Agreement by Retirement Board

Section 7. (a) Any collective bargaining agreement reached between the employer and the exclusive representative shall not exceed a term of three years; provided, however, that the employer and the exclusive representative through negotiation may agree to include a provision in a collective bargaining agreement stating that the agreement's terms shall remain in full force and effect beyond the 3 years until a successor agreement is voluntarily negotiated by the parties. The agreement shall be reduced to writing, executed by the parties, and a copy of such agreement shall be filed with the commission and with the house and senate committees on ways and means forthwith by the employer.
(b) The employer, other than the board of higher education or the board of trustees of the University of Massachusetts, the chief justice for administration and management, a county sheriff, the PCA quality home care workforce council, the alcoholic beverage control commission, or the state lottery commission, shall submit to the appropriate legislative body within thirty days after the date on which the agreement is executed by the parties, a request for an appropriation necessary to fund the cost items contained therein; provided, that if the general court is not in session at that time, such request shall be submitted at the next session thereof. If the appropriate legislative body duly rejects the request for an appropriation necessary to fund the cost items, such cost items shall be returned to the parties for further bargaining. The provisions of the preceding two sentences shall not apply to agreements reached by school committees in cities and towns in which the provisions of section thirty-four of chapter seventy-one are operative.
(c) The provisions of this paragraph shall apply to the board of higher education, the board of trustees of the University of Massachusetts, the chief justice for administration and management, a county sheriff, the PCA quality home care workforce council, the department of early education and care with regard to bargaining with family child care providers, the alcoholic beverage control commission, Massachusetts Department of Transportation and the state lottery commission.
Every such employer shall submit to the governor, within thirty days after the date on which a collective bargaining agreement is executed by the parties, a request for an appropriation necessary to fund such incremental cost items contained therein as are required to be funded in the then current fiscal year, provided, however, that if such agreement first has effect in a subsequent fiscal year, such request shall be submitted pursuant to the provisions of this paragraph. Every such employer shall append to such request an estimate of the monies necessary to fund such incremental cost items contained therein as are required to be funded in each fiscal year, during the term of the agreement, subsequent to the fiscal year for which such request is made and shall submit to the general court within the aforesaid thirty days, a copy of such request and such appended estimate; provided, further, that every such employer shall append to such request copies of each said collective bargaining agreement, together with documentation and analyses of all changes to be made in the schedules of permanent and temporary positions required by said agreement. Whenever the governor shall have failed, within forty-five days from the date on which such request shall have been received by him, to recommend to the general court that the general court appropriate the monies so requested, the request shall be referred back to the parties for further bargaining.
(d) If a collective bargaining agreement reached by the employer and the exclusive representative contains a conflict between matters which are within the scope of negotiations pursuant to section six of this chapter and any municipal personnel ordinance, by-law, rule or regulation; the regulations of a police chief pursuant to section ninety-seven A of chapter forty-one or of a police commissioner or other head of a police or public safety department of a municipality; the regulations of a fire chief or other head of a fire department pursuant to chapter forty-eight; any of the following statutory provisions or rules or regulations made thereunder:
(a) the second paragraph of section twenty-eight of chapter seven;
(a.5) section six E of chapter twenty-one;
(b) sections fifty to fifty-six, inclusive, of chapter thirty-five;
(b.5) section seventeen I of chapter one hundred and eighty;
(c) section twenty-four A, paragraphs (4) and (5) of section forty-five, paragraphs (1), (4) and (10) of section forty-six, section forty-nine, as it applies to allocation appeals, and section fifty-three of chapter thirty;
(d) sections twenty-one A and twenty-one B of chapter forty;
(e) sections one hundred and eight D to one hundred and eight I, inclusive, and sections one hundred and eleven to one hundred and eleven I, inclusive, of chapter forty-one;
(f) section thirty-three A of chapter forty-four;
(g) sections fifty-seven to fifty-nine, inclusive, of chapter forty-eight;
(g.5) section sixty-two of chapter ninety-two;
(h) sections fourteen to seventeen E, inclusive, of chapter one hundred and forty-seven;
(i) sections thirty to forty-two, inclusive, of chapter one hundred and forty-nine;
(j) section twenty-eight A of chapter seven;
(k) sections forty-five to fifty, inclusive, of chapter thirty;
(l) sections thirty, thirty-three and thirty-nine of chapter two hundred and seventeen;
(m) sections sixty-one, sixty-three and sixty-eight of chapter two hundred and eighteen;
(n) sections sixty-nine to seventy-three, inclusive, and seventy-five, eighty and eighty-nine of chapter two hundred and twenty-one;
(o) section fifty-three C of chapter two hundred and sixty-two;
(p) sections eighty-four, eighty-five, eighty-nine, ninety-four and ninety-nine B of chapter two hundred and seventy-six;
(p.5) the third paragraph of section 58 of chapter 31;
(q) section eight of chapter two hundred and eleven B, the terms of the collective bargaining agreement shall prevail.
(e) If the commonwealth has agreed under a collective bargaining agreement with an employee organization to exercise statutory rights of the commonwealth regarding the removal of employees in a certain manner with respect to the members of that employee organization, then the commonwealth shall exercise such rights of removal in accordance with the terms of the collective bargaining agreement.
An employer entering into a collective bargaining agreement with an employee organization shall provide a copy of the agreement to the retirement board to which the employees covered by the agreement are members. All retirement systems shall maintain files of all active collective bargaining agreements which cover the systems members. The retirement board shall review collective bargaining agreements for compliance with chapter 32.
Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, employee and employee exchange of tours shall be governed by this chapter.