Florida Statutes

Fla. Stat. § 447.203 (2025)

Definitions.

✓ 2025 Florida Statutes — current through the 2025 Regular Session

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447.203 Definitions.—As used in this part:

(1) “Commission” means the Public Employees Relations Commission created by s. 447.205.

(2) “Public employer” or “employer” means the state or any county, municipality, or special district or any subdivision or agency thereof which the commission determines has sufficient legal distinctiveness properly to carry out the functions of a public employer. With respect to all public employees determined by the commission as properly belonging to a statewide bargaining unit composed of State Career Service System employees or Selected Professional Service employees, the Governor is deemed to be the public employer; and the Board of Governors of the State University System, or the board’s designee, is deemed to be the public employer with respect to all public employees of each constituent state university. The board of trustees of a community college is deemed to be the public employer with respect to all employees of the community college. The district school board is deemed to be the public employer with respect to all employees of the school district. The Board of Trustees of the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind is deemed to be the public employer with respect to the academic and academic administrative personnel of the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind. The Governor is deemed to be the public employer with respect to all employees in the Correctional Education Program of the Department of Corrections established pursuant to s. 944.801.

(3) “Public employee” means any person employed by a public employer except:

(a) Those persons appointed by the Governor or elected by the people, agency heads, and members of boards and commissions.

(b) Those persons holding positions by appointment or employment in the organized militia.

(d) Those persons who are designated by the commission as managerial or confidential employees pursuant to criteria contained herein.

(e) Those persons holding positions of employment with the Florida Legislature.

(f) Those persons who have been convicted of a crime and are inmates confined to institutions within the state.

(g) Those persons appointed to inspection positions in federal/state fruit and vegetable inspection service whose conditions of appointment are affected by the following:

1. Federal license requirement.

2. Federal autonomy regarding investigation and disciplining of appointees.

3. Frequent transfers due to harvesting conditions.

(h) Those persons employed by the Public Employees Relations Commission.

(i) Those persons enrolled as undergraduate students in a state university who perform part-time work for the state university.

(4) “Managerial employees” are those employees who:

(a) Perform jobs that are not of a routine, clerical, or ministerial nature and require the exercise of independent judgment in the performance of such jobs and to whom one or more of the following applies:

1. They formulate or assist in formulating policies which are applicable to bargaining unit employees.

2. They may reasonably be required on behalf of the employer to assist in the preparation for the conduct of collective bargaining negotiations.

3. They have a role in the administration of agreements resulting from collective bargaining negotiations.

4. They have a significant role in personnel administration.

5. They have a significant role in employee relations.

6. They are included in the definition of administrative personnel contained in s. 1012.01(3).

7. They have a significant role in the preparation or administration of budgets for any public agency or institution or subdivision thereof.

(b) Serve as police chiefs, fire chiefs, or directors of public safety of any police, fire, or public safety department. Other police officers, as defined in s. 943.10(1), and firefighters, as defined in s. 633.102, may be determined by the commission to be managerial employees of such departments. In making such determinations, the commission shall consider, in addition to the criteria established in paragraph (a), the paramilitary organizational structure of the department involved.

However, in determining whether an individual is a managerial employee pursuant to paragraph (a) or paragraph (b), above, the commission may consider historic relationships of the employee to the public employer and to coemployees.

(5) “Confidential employees” are persons who act in a confidential capacity to assist or aid managerial employees as defined in subsection (4).

(6) “Strike” means the concerted failure of employees to report for duty; the concerted absence of employees from their positions; the concerted stoppage of work by employees; the concerted submission of resignations by employees; the concerted abstinence in whole or in part by any group of employees from the full and faithful performance of the duties of employment with a public employer for the purpose of inducing, influencing, condoning, or coercing a change in the terms and conditions of employment or the rights, privileges, or obligations of public employment, or participating in a deliberate and concerted course of conduct which adversely affects the services of the public employer; the concerted failure of employees to report for work after the expiration of a collective bargaining agreement; and picketing in furtherance of a work stoppage. The term “strike” shall also mean any overt preparation, including, but not limited to, the establishment of strike funds with regard to the above-listed activities.

(7) “Strike funds” are any appropriations by an employee organization which are established to directly or indirectly aid any employee or employee organization to participate in a strike in the state.

(8) “Bargaining unit” means either that unit determined by the commission, that unit determined through local regulations promulgated pursuant to s. 447.603, or that unit determined by the public employer and the public employee organization and approved by the commission to be appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining. However, no bargaining unit shall be defined as appropriate which includes employees of two employers that are not departments or divisions of the state, a county, a municipality, or other political entity.

(9) “Chief executive officer” for the state shall mean the Governor and for other public employers shall mean the person, whether elected or appointed, who is responsible to the legislative body of the public employer for the administration of the governmental affairs of the public employer.

(10) “Legislative body” means the State Legislature, the board of county commissioners, the district school board, the governing body of a municipality, or the governing body of an instrumentality or unit of government having authority to appropriate funds and establish policy governing the terms and conditions of employment and which, as the case may be, is the appropriate legislative body for the bargaining unit. For purposes of s. 447.403, the Board of Governors of the State University System, or the board’s designee, shall be deemed to be the legislative body with respect to all employees of each constituent state university. For purposes of s. 447.403 the board of trustees of a community college shall be deemed to be the legislative body with respect to all employees of the community college.

(11) “Employee organization” or “organization” means any labor organization, union, association, fraternal order, occupational or professional society, or group, however organized or constituted, which represents, or seeks to represent, any public employee or group of public employees concerning any matters relating to their employment relationship with a public employer.

(12) “Bargaining agent” means the employee organization which has been certified by the commission as representing the employees in the bargaining unit, as provided in s. 447.307, or its representative.

(13) “Professional employee” means:

(a) Any employee engaged in work in any two or more of the following categories:

1. Work predominantly intellectual and varied in character as opposed to routine mental, manual, mechanical, or physical work;

2. Work involving the consistent exercise of discretion and judgment in its performance;

3. Work of such a character that the output produced or the result accomplished cannot be standardized in relation to a given period of time; and

4. Work requiring advanced knowledge in a field of science or learning customarily acquired by a prolonged course of specialized intellectual instruction and study in an institution of higher learning or a hospital, as distinguished from a general academic education, an apprenticeship, or training in the performance of routine mental or physical processes.

(b) Any employee who:

1. Has completed the course of specialized intellectual instruction and study described in subparagraph 4. of paragraph (a); and

2. Is performing related work under supervision of a professional person to qualify to become a professional employee as defined in paragraph (a).

(14) “Collective bargaining” means the performance of the mutual obligations of the public employer and the bargaining agent of the employee organization to meet at reasonable times, to negotiate in good faith, and to execute a written contract with respect to agreements reached concerning the terms and conditions of employment, except that neither party shall be compelled to agree to a proposal or be required to make a concession unless otherwise provided in this part.

(15) “Membership dues deduction” means the practice of a public employer of deducting dues and uniform assessments from the salary or wages of a public employee. Such term also means the practice of a public employer of transmitting the sums so deducted to such employee organization.

(16) “Civil service” means any career, civil, or merit system used by any public employer.

(17) “Good faith bargaining” shall mean, but not be limited to, the willingness of both parties to meet at reasonable times and places, as mutually agreed upon, in order to discuss issues which are proper subjects of bargaining, with the intent of reaching a common accord. It shall include an obligation for both parties to participate actively in the negotiations with an open mind and a sincere desire, as well as making a sincere effort, to resolve differences and come to an agreement. In determining whether a party failed to bargain in good faith, the commission shall consider the total conduct of the parties during negotiations as well as the specific incidents of alleged bad faith. Incidents indicative of bad faith shall include, but not be limited to, the following occurrences:

(a) Failure to meet at reasonable times and places with representatives of the other party for the purpose of negotiations.

(b) Placing unreasonable restrictions on the other party as a prerequisite to meeting.

(d) Refusing, upon reasonable written request, to provide public information, excluding work products as defined in s. 447.605.

(e) Refusing to negotiate because of an unwanted person on the opposing negotiating team.

(f) Negotiating directly with employees rather than with their certified bargaining agent.

(g) Refusing to reduce a total agreement to writing.

(18) “Student representative” means the representative selected by each community college or university student government association. Each representative may be present at all negotiating sessions that take place between the appropriate public employer and an exclusive bargaining agent. The representative must be enrolled as a student with at least 8 credit hours in the respective community college or university during his or her term as student representative.

History.—s. 3, ch. 74-100; s. 1, ch. 76-39; s. 1, ch. 76-214; s. 1, ch. 76-269; s. 1, ch. 77-174; s. 6, ch. 77-343; s. 1, ch. 79-100; s. 118, ch. 79-222; s. 2, ch. 81-305; ss. 10, 12, ch. 85-241; s. 12, ch. 85-318; s. 5, ch. 86-145; s. 35, ch. 89-526; s. 12, ch. 90-365; s. 21, ch. 91-55; s. 14, ch. 91-269; s. 1, ch. 94-89; s. 12, ch. 95-325; s. 152, ch. 97-103; s. 1, ch. 2000-156; s. 1006, ch. 2002-387; s. 52, ch. 2007-217; s. 140, ch. 2013-183; s. 133, ch. 2019-167; s. 5, ch. 2023-245; s. 6, ch. 2025-110.

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 83 cases (2 in the last 5 years), 1976–2026 · leading case: Murphy v. MacK, 358 So. 2d 822 (Fla. 1978).

Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment

Murphy v. MacK, 358 So. 2d 822 (Fla. 1978). · cites it 14× “Comparing Section 447.203, Florida Statutes (1975), and Section 112.”

Chiles v. State Employees Attorneys Guild, 734 So. 2d 1030 (Fla. 1999). · cites it 17× “This law effectively denies all public employees who "by virtue of their positions of employment are regulated by the Florida Supreme Court" their constitutional right to bargain collectively. The legislature provided the following reason for passing this law: This action by the…”

Saf. HARBOR v. Commc'ns Workers, 715 So. 2d 265 (Fla. 1st DCA 1998). · cites it 28× “§ 447.203, Fla. Stat. (1995). The statute denominates a "professional employee" as "any employee engaged in work in any two or more of the following categories:.”

Florida Pub. Employees Council 79 v. Pub. Emp. Relations Comm'n, 871 So. 2d 270 (Fla. 1st DCA 2004). · cites it 20× “The Legislature amended section 447.203(2), Florida Statutes (2001), which set forth that "the Board of Regents shall be deemed to be the public employer with respect to all public employees within the State University System .”

Coastal Florida Police Benev. Ass'n, Inc. v. Williams, 838 So. 2d 543 (Fla. 2003). · cites it 8× “The Court answered affirmatively and held that deputy clerks were in fact public employees entitled to collective bargaining rights under section 447.203, Florida Statutes (1997).”

Pensacola Junior Coll. v. Florida Pub. Employees Relations Comm'n, 400 So. 2d 59 (Fla. 1st DCA 1981). · cites it 19× “The hearing officer also recommended that the Secretary to the Assistant to the President be designated as confidential since she prepares legal documents and other work products for the College’s labor law firm and is exposed to documents confidential as a matter of law in…”

Chiles v. State Employees Attorneys Guild, 714 So. 2d 502 (Fla. 1st DCA 1998). · cites it 18× “" § 447.203(3)(j), Fla. Stat. (1997). The apparent intent of this legislation is to eliminate statutorily the right of public employees working as lawyers to bargain collectively.”

United Fac. v. Bd. of Regents, Etc., 417 So. 2d 1055 (Fla. 1st DCA 1982). · cites it 12× “§ 447.203(3), Fla. Stat. (1974). In 1976, as the labor organization process continued to mature and bargaining units solidified into compatible groupings, UFF filed a petition seeking to represent graduate *1057 assistants.”

North Fla. Women's Health Servs. v. State, 866 So. 2d 612 (Fla. 2003). · cites it 2× “To that end, the trial court took evidence on whether section 447.203(3)(j) serves a compelling state interest and whether it does so by means least burdening state employees' rights to bargain collectively.”

Seag, Fpd, Nuhhce, Afscme v. State, 653 So. 2d 487 (Fla. 1st DCA 1995). · cites it 9× “[1] We affirm, but decline to reach the question of the constitutionality of section 447.203, Florida Statutes (Supp. 1994), because of the lack of a record to support the factual allegations upon which the parties rely.”

Sikes v. Boone, 562 F. Supp. 74 (N.D. Fla. 1983). · cites it 8× “In this action, the plaintiffs seek a declaratory judgment that the state supreme court’s interpretation of section 447.203, Florida Statutes, is violative of the First Amendment and the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution, and…”

Bd. of Regents v. Pub. EMP. REL. COM'N, 368 So. 2d 641 (Fla. 1st DCA 1979). · cites it 6× “The Board of Regents is included within the definition of a public employer under § 447.203(2), while a public employee, defined by § 447.”

Show all 83 citing cases →

— 447.203(1) — 1 case

City of Orlando v. Intern. Ass'n of Ff, Etc., 384 So. 2d 941 (Fla. 5th DCA 1980).

— 447.203(10) — 7 cases

United Fac. of Florida, Etc. v. Bd. of Regents, 365 So. 2d 1073 (Fla. 1st DCA 1979).

City of Winter Springs v. WINTER SPRINGS, 885 So. 2d 494 (Fla. 1st DCA 2004).

SARASOTA CTY. SCH. D. v. Sarasota Classified/Teachers Ass'n, 614 So. 2d 1143 (Fla. 2d DCA 1993).

Sheriff of Pasco Cnty. v. Florida State Lodge, 53 So. 3d 1073 (Fla. 1st DCA 2010).

Florida Sch. for the Deaf & the Blind v. Florida Sch. for the Deaf & the Blind, Teachers United, FTP-NEA, 483 So. 2d 58 (Fla. 1st DCA 1986).

— 447.203(11) — 3 cases

SARASOTA CTY. SCH. D. v. Sarasota Classified/Teachers Ass'n, 614 So. 2d 1143 (Fla. 2d DCA 1993).

Sch. Bd. of Lee Cnty. v. Pub. Employees Relations Comm'n, 513 So. 2d 1286 (Fla. 2d DCA 1987).

Lee Cty. Sch. Bd. v. Pub. Emp. Rel. Com'n, 513 So. 2d 1286 (Fla. 1st DCA 1987).

— 447.203(12) — 1 case

Mayor Alvin Brown & the City of Jacksonville v. Frank Denton, 152 So. 3d 8 (Fla. 1st DCA 2014).

— 447.203(13) — 1 case

Saf. HARBOR v. Commc'ns Workers, 715 So. 2d 265 (Fla. 1st DCA 1998). “§ 447.203, Fla. Stat. (1995). The statute denominates a "professional employee" as "any employee engaged in work in any two or more of the following categories:.”

— 447.203(13)(a) — 1 case

— 447.203(14) — 7 cases

Pasco Cty. Sch. Bd. v. Florida Pub. Emp. Rel. Comm., 353 So. 2d 108 (Fla. 1st DCA 1977).

City of Tallahassee v. PUB. EMP. RELATIONS, 393 So. 2d 1147 (Fla. 1st DCA 1981).

West Palm Beach Ass'n of Firefighters v. Bd. of City Comm'rs, 448 So. 2d 1212 (Fla. 4th DCA 1984).

Palm Beach Junior Coll. v. United Fac., 475 So. 2d 1221 (Fla. 1985).

ORANGE CTY. POL. BENEV. v. City of Casselberry, 457 So. 2d 1125 (Fla. 1st DCA 1984).

— 447.203(17) — 2 cases

Miami Beach v. Pub. Employees Relations, 937 So. 2d 226 (Fla. 3d DCA 2006).

Teamsters Local Union 444 v. Pasco Cnty. Bd. of Cnty. Commissioners, 505 So. 2d 541 (Fla. 2d DCA 1987).

— 447.203(17)(d) — 1 case

Miami Beach v. Pub. Employees Relations, 937 So. 2d 226 (Fla. 3d DCA 2006).

— 447.203(2) — 13 cases

Florida Pub. Employees Council 79 v. Pub. Emp. Relations Comm'n, 871 So. 2d 270 (Fla. 1st DCA 2004). “The Legislature amended section 447.203(2), Florida Statutes (2001), which set forth that "the Board of Regents shall be deemed to be the public employer with respect to all public employees within the State University System .”

William R. Crews v. State of Florida, 183 So. 3d 329 (Fla. 2015).

Keck v. Eminisor, 46 So. 3d 1065 (Fla. 1st DCA 2010).

Murphy v. MacK, 358 So. 2d 822 (Fla. 1978). “Comparing Section 447.203, Florida Statutes (1975), and Section 112.”

United Fac. of Florida v. PERC, 898 So. 2d 96 (Fla. 1st DCA 2005).

— 447.203(3) — 17 cases

Murphy v. MacK, 358 So. 2d 822 (Fla. 1978). “Comparing Section 447.203, Florida Statutes (1975), and Section 112.”

Coastal Florida Police Benev. Ass'n, Inc. v. Williams, 838 So. 2d 543 (Fla. 2003). “The Court answered affirmatively and held that deputy clerks were in fact public employees entitled to collective bargaining rights under section 447.203, Florida Statutes (1997).”

Sikes v. Boone, 562 F. Supp. 74 (N.D. Fla. 1983). “In this action, the plaintiffs seek a declaratory judgment that the state supreme court’s interpretation of section 447.203, Florida Statutes, is violative of the First Amendment and the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution, and…”

Bd. of Regents v. Pub. EMP. REL. COM'N, 368 So. 2d 641 (Fla. 1st DCA 1979). “The Board of Regents is included within the definition of a public employer under § 447.203(2), while a public employee, defined by § 447.”

United Fac. v. Bd. of Regents, Etc., 417 So. 2d 1055 (Fla. 1st DCA 1982). “§ 447.203(3), Fla. Stat. (1974). In 1976, as the labor organization process continued to mature and bargaining units solidified into compatible groupings, UFF filed a petition seeking to represent graduate *1057 assistants.”

— 447.203(3)(d) — 6 cases

Sheriff of Broward Cnty. v. Stanley, 50 So. 3d 640 (Fla. 1st DCA 2010).

Fuller v. Dep't of Educ., 927 So. 2d 28 (Fla. 1st DCA 2006).

Sch. Bd. of Marion Cty. v. Pub. Emp. Rel. Com'n, 330 So. 2d 770 (Fla. 1st DCA 1976).

Jess Parrish Mem'l Hosp. v. Florida Pub. Employees Relations Comm'n, 364 So. 2d 777 (Fla. 2d DCA 1978).

Sch. Bd. of Palm Beach Cnty. v. Florida Pub. Employees Relations Comm'n, 374 So. 2d 527 (Fla. 1st DCA 1978).

— 447.203(3)(e) — 1 case

Kelley v. Pub. Employees Relation Comm'n, 781 So. 2d 1193 (Fla. 5th DCA 2001).

— 447.203(3)(g) — 1 case

— 447.203(3)(i) — 2 cases

United Fac. of Florida v. Bd. of Regents, 423 So. 2d 429 (Fla. 1st DCA 1982).

— 447.203(3)(j) — 5 cases

Chiles v. State Employees Attorneys Guild, 734 So. 2d 1030 (Fla. 1999). “This law effectively denies all public employees who "by virtue of their positions of employment are regulated by the Florida Supreme Court" their constitutional right to bargain collectively. The legislature provided the following reason for passing this law: This action by the…”

Chiles v. State Employees Attorneys Guild, 714 So. 2d 502 (Fla. 1st DCA 1998). “" § 447.203(3)(j), Fla. Stat. (1997). The apparent intent of this legislation is to eliminate statutorily the right of public employees working as lawyers to bargain collectively.”

North Fla. Women's Health Servs. v. State, 866 So. 2d 612 (Fla. 2003). “To that end, the trial court took evidence on whether section 447.203(3)(j) serves a compelling state interest and whether it does so by means least burdening state employees' rights to bargain collectively.”

Seag, Fpd, Nuhhce, Afscme v. State, 653 So. 2d 487 (Fla. 1st DCA 1995). “[1] We affirm, but decline to reach the question of the constitutionality of section 447.203, Florida Statutes (Supp. 1994), because of the lack of a record to support the factual allegations upon which the parties rely.”

— 447.203(4) — 19 cases

Pensacola Junior Coll. v. Florida Pub. Employees Relations Comm'n, 400 So. 2d 59 (Fla. 1st DCA 1981). “The hearing officer also recommended that the Secretary to the Assistant to the President be designated as confidential since she prepares legal documents and other work products for the College’s labor law firm and is exposed to documents confidential as a matter of law in…”

City of Orlando v. Fla. Pub. Emp. Rels. Com'n, 435 So. 2d 275 (Fla. 5th DCA 1983).

Manatee Cty. v. Fla. Pub. Emp. Relations, 387 So. 2d 446 (Fla. 1st DCA 1980).

City of Winter Park v. Fla. Pub. Emp. Rel., 349 So. 2d 224 (Fla. 4th DCA 1977).

— 447.203(4)(a) — 8 cases

Sch. Bd. of Palm Beach Cnty. v. Florida Pub. Employees Relations Comm'n, 374 So. 2d 527 (Fla. 1st DCA 1978).

City of St. Augustine v. PROFESS. FIRE FIGHTERS, 440 So. 2d 416 (Fla. 5th DCA 1983).

Miami-Dade Cmty. Coll. Dist. Bd. of Trs. v. Florida Pub. Employees Relations Comm'n, 341 So. 2d 1054 (Fla. 1st DCA 1977).

Sch. Bd. of Polk Cnty. v. Polk Educ. Ass'n, 480 So. 2d 1360 (Fla. 2d DCA 1985).

— 447.203(4)(a)(1) — 1 case

Sch. Bd. of Palm Beach Cnty. v. Florida Pub. Employees Relations Comm'n, 374 So. 2d 527 (Fla. 1st DCA 1978).

— 447.203(4)(b) — 1 case

Miami-Dade Cmty. Coll. Dist. Bd. of Trs. v. Florida Pub. Employees Relations Comm'n, 341 So. 2d 1054 (Fla. 1st DCA 1977).

— 447.203(5) — 7 cases

City of Winter Park v. Fla. Pub. Emp. Rel., 349 So. 2d 224 (Fla. 4th DCA 1977).

Sch. Bd. of Palm Beach Cnty. v. Florida Pub. Employees Relations Comm'n, 374 So. 2d 527 (Fla. 1st DCA 1978).

State, Dep't of Admin. v. Pub. Employees Relations Comm'n, 443 So. 2d 258 (Fla. 1st DCA 1983).

Sch. Bd. of Polk Cnty. v. Polk Educ. Ass'n, 480 So. 2d 1360 (Fla. 2d DCA 1985).

— 447.203(6) — 2 cases

Sch. Bd. of Orange Cnty. v. Palowitch, 367 So. 2d 730 (Fla. 4th DCA 1979).

Duval Cnty. Sch. Bd. v. Florida Pub. Employees Relations Comm'n, 363 So. 2d 30 (Fla. 1st DCA 1978).

— 447.203(8) — 1 case

Sch. Dist. of Indian River Cnty. v. Florida Pub. Employees Relations Comm'n, 64 So. 3d 723 (Fla. 4th DCA 2011).

— 447.203(9) — 6 cases

Barbara Rustowicz v. North Broward Hosp. Dist. n/k/a Broward Health, 174 So. 3d 414 (Fla. 4th DCA 2015).

Rice-Lamar v. City of Fort Lauderdale, 853 So. 2d 1125 (Fla. 4th DCA 2003).

Saunders v. Hunter, 980 F. Supp. 1236 (M.D. Fla. 1997).

Harris v. Dist. Bd. of Trs. of Polk Cmty. Coll., 9 F. Supp. 2d 1319 (M.D. Fla. 1998).

Davis v. Orange Cnty. (M.D. Fla. 2023).

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