Employee Relations Codes (ERC)

What are Employee Relations Codes?

Employee Relations Codes (ERC) are designations in UCPath that identify an employee’s labor relations status as "confidential, supervisory, or managerial." The ERC determines whether an employee is included in or excluded from a bargaining unit under the Higher Education Employer-Employee Relations Act (HEERA). Using the correct code is important because it directly impacts collective bargaining representation, employee rights, and management responsibilities.

Why Employee Relations Codes (ERCs) Matter

Labor relations between the University and/or employees and employee organizations are governed by HEERA. HEERA establishes which employees have the right to union representation and collective bargaining. Employee Relations Codes (ERCs) help categorize employees to ensure proper compliance with HEERA regulations.

Selecting the correct Employee Relations Code (ERC) is essential for accurate representation, compliance, and reporting. Incorrect ERC assignments can lead to:

  • Increased risk of Unfair Labor Practices filed with the Public Employee Relations Board when positions are placed into an existing or new union bargaining unit.

  • Manager & Supervisor Roster Inaccuracies – ERCs are used to pull rosters for managers and supervisors, affecting reporting and workforce planning.

  • Union Roster Inaccuracies – UCPath data is used to generate union rosters, ensuring that represented employees are correctly classified. An incorrect ERC may result in employees being misclassified or missing from union reports.

  • Labor Relations Compliance – ERCs coupled with the union code are a key factor in tracking bargaining unit employees, ensuring compliance with labor agreements and policies.

  • Payroll & Deductions – ERCs determine union dues and fee deductions (such as retirement deductions) for certain represented employees. Different codes can trigger payroll and deduction overrides, and any misalignment may result in incorrect payroll deductions, resulting in overpayments and/or requiring corrections and manual adjustments.

Guidance for Selecting the Correct ERC

Most positions fall under 'All Others, Not Confidential.' Use the criteria below to select the appropriate ERC:

  1. Is the position Confidential?
    • Most positions are not considered confidential.
    • Review the ‘Confidential’ definition below.
    • Approval required: Contact ELR for consultation and approval.
  2. Is the position a Supervisor or Manager?
    • Review the Supervisor and Manager definitions below.
    • Job code titles may not explicitly indicate supervisory/managerial roles.
  3. Is the employee a Student in an Academic Title covered by the BR or BX bargaining unit?
    • Titles include Readers, Tutors, Teaching Assistants/Graduate Student Instructors, and Graduate Student Researchers.
    • Assign: 'Student in Academic Title Covered by HEERA.'
    • This ensures accurate union rosters and deductions.
  4. Is this employee a Police Sergeant Supervisor 2 (job code 004969) covered by the SA bargaining unit?
    • Job Code 004969: Police Sergeant Supv 2 SA
    • Assign: 'Supervisor, Represented.'
  5. Does the employee work abroad or at a non-California UC location?
    • Employees working abroad or at a non-California UC location (for example: UCDC) should have the ERC of ‘Not Covered by HEERA - Out of State.’
    • Employees who work at UC Berkeley, but live out of state should not be designated as ‘Not Covered by HEERA - Out of State.’
  6. If None of the Above Apply: Select ‘All Others, Not Confidential’
    • This is the most common designation.

UCPath ERC Values Quick Reference

A - Manager, Not Confidential

  • Must meet the 'Manager' definition.

B - Manager, Confidential*

  • Must meet the 'Manager' definition.

  • Must meet the ‘Confidential’ definition.

  • Must be approved by ELR.

C - Supervisor, Not Confidential

D - Supervisor, Confidential*

  • Must meet the 'Supervisor' definition.

  • Must meet the ‘Confidential’ definition.

  • Must be approved by ELR.

E - All Others, Not Confidential

  • Most common designation.

  • Used when an employee is not confidential, a Manager, a Supervisor, a Student in an Academic title covered by the BR or BX union, working both out-of-state and for a non-California UC, or working abroad.

F - All Others, Confidential*

  • Must meet the ‘Confidential’ definition.

  • Employee is not a Manager, a Supervisor, a Student in an Academic title covered by the BR or BX union, working both out-of-state and for a non-California UC, or working abroad.

G - Not Covered by HEERA (Out of State)

  • Employees working at UC offices located outside of the state of CA (for example: UCDC) and do not live in California, OR employees working out-of-country.

  • Employees who work at UC Berkeley, but live out of state should not be designated as ‘Not Covered by HEERA.’

H - Student Employees in Academic Title Covered by HEERA (GSIs, GSRs Readers, Tutors, and other titles covered by the UAW agreement)

  • Must be a student in an academic title.

  • Must be in a title covered by the BR or BX bargaining unit.

I - Student Employees in Academic Title Not Covered by HEERA (no longer in use)

L - Supervisor, Represented

  • Must be in the Police Sergeant Supv 2 SA job code (004969) covered by the SA bargaining unit.

  • Must meet the 'Supervisor' definition.

X - Not Applicable - Contingent WK (CWR)

  • Must be in a Contingent Worker (CWR) title.

*Confidential designations require prior approval by People & Culture (Employee Labor Relations). Contact ELR for consultation and approval. See Compensation Compliance web page for additional information.

Important Definitions

Designating a position as supervisory, confidential or manager has important legal and labor relations implications. The criteria for each designation are established by the Higher Education Employee Relations Act (HEERA).

Confidential

HEERA Section 3562(d) defines a confidential employee as "any employee who is required to develop or present management positions with respect to meeting and conferring or whose duties normally require access to confidential information which contributes significantly to the development of those management positions."

Note: the everyday definition of “confidential” differs from the HEERA Section 3562(d) statutory definition set forth above.

  • Although the wording of the law might be unclear, legal interpretations do make it clear that just because an employee has access to confidential information, related to bargaining or otherwise, they are not necessarily deemed to be confidential under HEERA.

  • To be classified as "confidential," an employee must be someone or support someone who is directly involved in developing or presenting management's positions during bargaining meetings.

Note: Except for employees in the Office of Human Resources, in the Chancellor's Office, and those who directly support the Vice Chancellors, the use of the "Confidential" designation should occur only rarely.

  • Contact ELR for consultation and approval of a confidential designation.

Supervisor

HEERA Section 3580.3 defines supervisory employee as “any individual, regardless of the job description or title, having authority, in the interest of the employer to hire, transfer, suspend, lay off, recall, promote, discharge, assign, reward, or discipline other employees, or responsibility to direct them, or to adjust their grievances, or effectively to recommend such action, if, in connection with the foregoing, the exercise of such authority is not of a merely routine or clerical nature, but requires the use of independent judgment. With respect to faculty or academic employees, any department chair, head of a similar academic unit or program, or other employee who performs the foregoing duties primarily in the interest of and on behalf of the members of the academic department, unit or program, shall not be deemed a supervisory employee solely because of such duties; provided, that with respect to the University of California and … there shall be a rebuttable presumption that such an individual appointed by the employer to an indefinite term shall be deemed to be a supervisor. Employees whose duties are substantially similar to those of their subordinates shall not be considered to be supervisory employees.”

Note: To qualify, the supervisor must supervise at least two FTE in total.

Manager

HEERA Section 3562(k) defines a managerial employee as “any employee having significant responsibilities for formulating or administering policies and programs. No employee or group of employees shall be deemed to be managerial employees solely because the employee or group of employees participates in decisions with respect to courses, curriculum, personnel, and other matters of educational policy. A department chair or head of a similar academic unit or program who performs the foregoing duties primarily on behalf of the members of the academic unit or program shall not be deemed a managerial employee solely because of those duties.”

Note: The level of the managerial employee would likely and usually include:

  • cabinet members,
  • associate vice chancellors and provosts,
  • and possibly some additional employees depending on the program managed - generally MSP 3 and above, with limited exceptions.

A job classification as a “manager” does not necessarily qualify.

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