HB4026 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB094 04015 NHT 42581 b

94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2005 and 2006
HB4026

Introduced 2/28/2005, by Rep. Dave Winters

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

115 ILCS 5/12	from Ch. 48, par. 1712
115 ILCS 5/13	from Ch. 48, par. 1713

Amends the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Act. With regard to school districts, provides that an educational employee may not engage in a strike and an educational employer may not institute a lockout if that action would cause an interruption of ongoing essential educational services. Instead, requires the parties to submit to binding arbitration. Also provides that it is unlawful for a person to instigate or induce or conspire with or encourage a person to engage in a strike, lockout, slowdown, or work stoppage if that action would cause an interruption of ongoing essential educational services. Provides that these provisions do not prohibit a strike or lockout that began before the start of the school year. Effective immediately.

A BILL FOR

AN ACT regarding educational labor relations.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Illinois Educational Labor Relations Act is amended by changing Sections 12 and 13 as follows:

(115 ILCS 5/12) (from Ch. 48, par. 1712)

Sec. 12. Impasse procedures.

(a) If the parties engaged in collective bargaining have not reached an agreement by 90 days before the scheduled start of the forthcoming school year, the parties shall notify the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board concerning the status of negotiations.

Upon demand of either party, collective bargaining between the employer and an exclusive bargaining representative must begin within 60 days of the date of certification of the representative by the Board, or in the case of an existing exclusive bargaining representative, within 60 days of the receipt by a party of a demand to bargain issued by the other party. Once commenced, collective bargaining must continue for at least a 60 day period, unless a contract is entered into.

Except as otherwise provided in subsection (b) of this Section, if after a reasonable period of negotiation and within 45 days of the scheduled start of the forth-coming school year, the parties engaged in collective bargaining have reached an impasse, either party may petition the Board to initiate mediation. Alternatively, the Board on its own motion may initiate mediation during this period. However, mediation shall be initiated by the Board at any time when jointly requested by the parties and the services of the mediators shall continuously be made available to the employer and to the exclusive bargaining representative for purposes of arbitration of grievances and mediation or arbitration of contract disputes. If requested by the parties, the mediator may perform fact-finding and in so doing conduct hearings and make written findings and recommendations for resolution of the dispute. Such mediation shall be provided by the Board and shall be held before qualified impartial individuals. Nothing prohibits the use of other individuals or organizations such as the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service or the American Arbitration Association selected by both the exclusive bargaining representative and the employer.

If the parties engaged in collective bargaining fail to reach an agreement within 15 days of the scheduled start of the forthcoming school year and have not requested mediation, the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board shall invoke mediation, unless binding arbitration applies under subsection (c) of Section 13 of this Act.

Whenever mediation is initiated or invoked under this subsection (a), the parties may stipulate to defer selection of a mediator in accordance with rules adopted by the Board.

(b) If, after a period of bargaining of at least 60 days, a dispute or impasse exists between an employer whose territorial boundaries are coterminous with those of a city having a population in excess of 500,000 and the exclusive bargaining representative over a subject or matter set forth in Section 4.5 of this Act, the parties shall submit the dispute or impasse to the dispute resolution procedure agreed to between the parties. The procedure shall provide for mediation of disputes by a rotating mediation panel and may, at the request of either party, include the issuance of advisory findings of fact and recommendations.

(c) The costs of fact finding and mediation shall be shared equally between the employer and the exclusive bargaining agent, provided that, for purposes of mediation under this Act, if either party requests the use of mediation services from the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, the other party shall either join in such request or bear the additional cost of mediation services from another source.

(d) Nothing in this Act prevents an employer and an exclusive bargaining representative from mutually submitting to final and binding impartial arbitration unresolved issues concerning the terms of a new collective bargaining agreement.

(Source: P.A. 93-3, eff. 4-16-03.)

(115 ILCS 5/13) (from Ch. 48, par. 1713)

Sec. 13. Strikes and lockouts.

(a) Notwithstanding the existence of any other provision in this Act or other law, educational employees employed in school districts organized under Article 34 of the School Code shall not engage in a strike at any time during the 18 month period that commences on the effective date of this amendatory Act of 1995. An educational employee employed in a school district organized under Article 34 of the School Code who participates in a strike in violation of this Section is subject to discipline by the employer. In addition, no educational employer organized under Article 34 of the School Code may pay or cause to be paid to an educational employee who participates in a strike in violation of this subsection any wages or other compensation for any period during which an educational employee participates in the strike, except for wages or compensation earned before participation in the strike. Notwithstanding the existence of any other provision in this Act or other law, during the 18-month period that strikes are prohibited under this subsection nothing in this subsection shall be construed to require an educational employer to submit to a binding dispute resolution process.

(b) Notwithstanding the existence of any other provision in this Act or any other law, educational employees other than those employed in a school district organized under Article 34 of the School Code and, after the expiration of the 18 month period that commences on the effective date of this amendatory Act of 1995, educational employees in a school district organized under Article 34 of the School Code shall not engage in a strike except under the following conditions:

(1) they are represented by an exclusive bargaining representative;

(2) mediation has been used without success;

(3) at least 10 days have elapsed after a notice of intent to strike has been given by the exclusive bargaining representative to the educational employer, the regional superintendent and the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board;

(4) the collective bargaining agreement between the educational employer and educational employees, if any, has expired; and

(5) the employer and the exclusive bargaining representative have not mutually submitted the unresolved issues to arbitration.

If, however, in the opinion of an employer the strike is or has become a clear and present danger to the health or safety of the public, the employer may initiate in the circuit court of the county in which such danger exists an action for relief which may include, but is not limited to, injunction. The court may grant appropriate relief upon the finding that such clear and present danger exists. An unfair practice or other evidence of lack of clean hands by the educational employer is a defense to such action. Except as provided for in this paragraph, the jurisdiction of the court under this Section is limited by the Labor Dispute Act.

(c) Notwithstanding the existence of any other provision in this Act or any other law, with regard to school districts, an educational employee may not engage in a strike and an educational employer may not institute a lockout if that action would cause an interruption of ongoing essential educational services. Instead, the parties shall submit to binding arbitration in accordance with procedures adopted by the Board. It is unlawful for a person to instigate or induce or conspire with or encourage a person to engage in a strike, lockout, slowdown, or work stoppage if that action would cause an interruption of ongoing essential educational services. Nothing in this subsection (c) prohibits a strike or lockout that began before the start of the school year.

(Source: P.A. 89-15, eff. 5-30-95; 90-548, eff. 1-1-98.)

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.