Section 110.20  Policy

a)         The labor policy of the State of Illinois is designed to promote the settlement of issues between employers and represented employees through the processes of collective bargaining and voluntary arbitration.  This policy encourages the use of voluntary arbitration to resolve disputes over the interpretation or application of collective bargaining agreements. Voluntary arbitration and fact-finding in disputes and disagreements over establishment or modification of contract terms are important features of constructive labor-management relations, as alternatives to economic strife in the settlement of disputes.

b)         Additionally, it is the policy of the State to promote expeditious resolution of private employment contract disputes between an employer and employee, to provide to the judicial branch of government means of alternative resolution of suits regarding the interpretation or application of collective bargaining agreements or private employment contracts, and in general to offer these voluntary mechanisms of dispute resolution as needed by both the private and public sector of the economy.