Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois v. Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board

# University of Illinois Department Chairs Case Summary ## What Happened The Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board had ruled that department chairs at the University of Illinois Springfield could join the faculty union and participate in collective bargaining negotiations about wages, benefits, and working conditions. The university appealed this decision, arguing that department chairs should be excluded from the bargaining unit. ## What the Court Decided The appellate court agreed with the university and reversed the earlier decision. The court determined that department chairs are "managerial employees" because they have supervisory responsibilities over other faculty members. As a result, they cannot be part of the tenure-system faculty union. ## Why This Matters for Workers This ruling limits which employees can organize collectively with their coworkers. Department chairs lost their ability to negotiate as part of the faculty union at that campus. The decision affects workers in supervisory positions more broadly—if courts classify you as having management duties, you may lose union protection even if you also perform regular job duties alongside your supervisory responsibilities.