Public Act 93-0444
HB3396 Enrolled LRB093 07665 WGH 07845 b
AN ACT concerning labor relations.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Illinois Public Labor Relations Act is
amended by changing Section 9 as follows:
(5 ILCS 315/9) (from Ch. 48, par. 1609)
Sec. 9. Elections; recognition.
(a) Whenever in accordance with such regulations as may
be prescribed by the Board a petition has been filed:
(1) by a public employee or group of public
employees or any labor organization acting in their
behalf demonstrating that 30% of the public employees in
an appropriate unit (A) wish to be represented for the
purposes of collective bargaining by a labor
organization as exclusive representative, or (B)
asserting that the labor organization which has been
certified or is currently recognized by the public
employer as bargaining representative is no longer the
representative of the majority of public employees in the
unit; or
(2) by a public employer alleging that one or more
labor organizations have presented to it a claim that
they be recognized as the representative of a majority of
the public employees in an appropriate unit,
the Board shall investigate such petition, and if it has
reasonable cause to believe that a question of representation
exists, shall provide for an appropriate hearing upon due
notice. Such hearing shall be held at the offices of the
Board or such other location as the Board deems appropriate.
If it finds upon the record of the hearing that a question of
representation exists, it shall direct an election in
accordance with subsection (d) of this Section, which
election shall be held not later than 120 days after the date
the petition was filed regardless of whether that petition
was filed before or after the effective date of this
amendatory Act of 1987; provided, however, the Board may
extend the time for holding an election by an additional 60
days if, upon motion by a person who has filed a petition
under this Section or is the subject of a petition filed
under this Section and is a party to such hearing, or upon
the Board's own motion, the Board finds that good cause has
been shown for extending the election date; provided further,
that nothing in this Section shall prohibit the Board, in its
discretion, from extending the time for holding an election
for so long as may be necessary under the circumstances,
where the purpose for such extension is to permit resolution
by the Board of an unfair labor practice charge filed by one
of the parties to a representational proceeding against the
other based upon conduct which may either affect the
existence of a question concerning representation or have a
tendency to interfere with a fair and free election, where
the party filing the charge has not filed a request to
proceed with the election; and provided further that prior to
the expiration of the total time allotted for holding an
election, a person who has filed a petition under this
Section or is the subject of a petition filed under this
Section and is a party to such hearing or the Board, may move
for and obtain the entry of an order in the circuit court of
the county in which the majority of the public employees
sought to be represented by such person reside, such order
extending the date upon which the election shall be held.
Such order shall be issued by the circuit court only upon a
judicial finding that there has been a sufficient showing
that there is good cause to extend the election date beyond
such period and shall require the Board to hold the election
as soon as is feasible given the totality of the
circumstances. Such 120 day period may be extended one or
more times by the agreement of all parties to the hearing to
a date certain without the necessity of obtaining a court
order. Nothing in this Section prohibits the waiving of
hearings by stipulation for the purpose of a consent election
in conformity with the rules and regulations of the Board or
an election in a unit agreed upon by the parties. Other
interested employee organizations may intervene in the
proceedings in the manner and within the time period
specified by rules and regulations of the Board. Interested
parties who are necessary to the proceedings may also
intervene in the proceedings in the manner and within the
time period specified by the rules and regulations of the
Board.
(a-5) The Board shall designate an exclusive
representative for purposes of collective bargaining when the
representative demonstrates a showing of majority interest by
employees in the unit. If the parties to a dispute are
without agreement on the means to ascertain the choice, if
any, of employee organization as their representative, the
Board shall ascertain the employees' choice of employee
organization, on the basis of dues deduction authorization
and other evidence, or, if necessary, by conducting an
election. If either party provides to the Board, before the
designation of a representative, clear and convincing
evidence that the dues deduction authorizations, and other
evidence upon which the Board would otherwise rely to
ascertain the employees' choice of representative, are
fraudulent or were obtained through coercion, the Board shall
promptly thereafter conduct an election. The Board shall also
investigate and consider a party's allegations that the dues
deduction authorizations and other evidence submitted in
support of a designation of representative without an
election were subsequently changed, altered, withdrawn, or
withheld as a result of employer fraud, coercion, or any
other unfair labor practice by the employer. If the Board
determines that a labor organization would have had a
majority interest but for an employer's fraud, coercion, or
unfair labor practice, it shall designate the labor
organization as an exclusive representative without
conducting an election.
(b) The Board shall decide in each case, in order to
assure public employees the fullest freedom in exercising the
rights guaranteed by this Act, a unit appropriate for the
purpose of collective bargaining, based upon but not limited
to such factors as: historical pattern of recognition;
community of interest including employee skills and
functions; degree of functional integration;
interchangeability and contact among employees; fragmentation
of employee groups; common supervision, wages, hours and
other working conditions of the employees involved; and the
desires of the employees. For purposes of this subsection,
fragmentation shall not be the sole or predominant factor
used by the Board in determining an appropriate bargaining
unit. Except with respect to non-State fire fighters and
paramedics employed by fire departments and fire protection
districts, non-State peace officers and peace officers in the
State Department of State Police, a single bargaining unit
determined by the Board may not include both supervisors and
nonsupervisors, except for bargaining units in existence on
the effective date of this Act. With respect to non-State
fire fighters and paramedics employed by fire departments and
fire protection districts, non-State peace officers and peace
officers in the State Department of State Police, a single
bargaining unit determined by the Board may not include both
supervisors and nonsupervisors, except for bargaining units
in existence on the effective date of this amendatory Act of
1985.
In cases involving an historical pattern of recognition,
and in cases where the employer has recognized the union as
the sole and exclusive bargaining agent for a specified
existing unit, the Board shall find the employees in the unit
then represented by the union pursuant to the recognition to
be the appropriate unit.
Notwithstanding the above factors, where the majority of
public employees of a craft so decide, the Board shall
designate such craft as a unit appropriate for the purposes
of collective bargaining.
The Board shall not decide that any unit is appropriate
if such unit includes both professional and nonprofessional
employees, unless a majority of each group votes for
inclusion in such unit.
(c) Nothing in this Act shall interfere with or negate
the current representation rights or patterns and practices
of labor organizations which have historically represented
public employees for the purpose of collective bargaining,
including but not limited to the negotiations of wages, hours
and working conditions, discussions of employees' grievances,
resolution of jurisdictional disputes, or the establishment
and maintenance of prevailing wage rates, unless a majority
of employees so represented express a contrary desire
pursuant to the procedures set forth in this Act.
(d) In instances where the employer does not voluntarily
recognize a labor organization as the exclusive bargaining
representative for a unit of employees, the Board shall
determine the majority representative of the public employees
in an appropriate collective bargaining unit by conducting a
secret ballot election, except as otherwise provided in
subsection (a-5). Within 7 days after the Board issues its
bargaining unit determination and direction of election or
the execution of a stipulation for the purpose of a consent
election, the public employer shall submit to the labor
organization the complete names and addresses of those
employees who are determined by the Board to be eligible to
participate in the election. When the Board has determined
that a labor organization has been fairly and freely chosen
by a majority of employees in an appropriate unit, it shall
certify such organization as the exclusive representative.
If the Board determines that a majority of employees in an
appropriate unit has fairly and freely chosen not to be
represented by a labor organization, it shall so certify. The
Board may also revoke the certification of the public
employee organizations as exclusive bargaining
representatives which have been found by a secret ballot
election to be no longer the majority representative.
(e) The Board shall not conduct an election in any
bargaining unit or any subdivision thereof within which a
valid election has been held in the preceding 12-month
period. The Board shall determine who is eligible to vote in
an election and shall establish rules governing the conduct
of the election or conduct affecting the results of the
election. The Board shall include on a ballot in a
representation election a choice of "no representation". A
labor organization currently representing the bargaining unit
of employees shall be placed on the ballot in any
representation election. In any election where none of the
choices on the ballot receives a majority, a runoff election
shall be conducted between the 2 choices receiving the
largest number of valid votes cast in the election. A labor
organization which receives a majority of the votes cast in
an election shall be certified by the Board as exclusive
representative of all public employees in the unit.
(f) Nothing in this or any other Act prohibits
recognition of A labor organization shall be designated as
the exclusive representative by a public employer by mutual
consent of the employer and the labor organization, provided
that the labor organization represents a majority of the
public employees in an appropriate unit. Any employee
organization which is designated or selected by the majority
of public employees, in a unit of the public employer having
no other recognized or certified representative, as their
representative for purposes of collective bargaining may
request recognition by the public employer in writing. The
public employer shall post such request for a period of at
least 20 days following its receipt thereof on bulletin
boards or other places used or reserved for employee notices.
(g) Within the 20-day period any other interested
employee organization may petition the Board in the manner
specified by rules and regulations of the Board, provided
that such interested employee organization has been
designated by at least 10% of the employees in an appropriate
bargaining unit which includes all or some of the employees
in the unit recognized by the employer. In such event, the
Board shall proceed with the petition in the same manner as
provided by paragraph (1) of subsection (a) of this Section.
(h) No election shall be directed by the Board in any
bargaining unit where there is in force a valid collective
bargaining agreement. The Board, however, may process an
election petition filed between 90 and 60 days prior to the
expiration of the date of an agreement, and may further
refine, by rule or decision, the implementation of this
provision. No collective bargaining agreement bars an
election upon the petition of persons not parties thereto
where more than 3 years have elapsed since the effective date
of the agreement.
(i) An order of the Board dismissing a representation
petition, determining and certifying that a labor
organization has been fairly and freely chosen by a majority
of employees in an appropriate bargaining unit, determining
and certifying that a labor organization has not been fairly
and freely chosen by a majority of employees in the
bargaining unit or certifying a labor organization as the
exclusive representative of employees in an appropriate
bargaining unit because of a determination by the Board that
the labor organization is the historical bargaining
representative of employees in the bargaining unit, is a
final order. Any person aggrieved by any such order issued
on or after the effective date of this amendatory Act of 1987
may apply for and obtain judicial review in accordance with
provisions of the Administrative Review Law, as now or
hereafter amended, except that such review shall be afforded
directly in the Appellate Court for the district in which the
aggrieved party resides or transacts business. Any direct
appeal to the Appellate Court shall be filed within 35 days
from the date that a copy of the decision sought to be
reviewed was served upon the party affected by the decision.
(Source: P.A. 87-736; 88-1.)
Section 10. The Illinois Educational Labor Relations Act
is amended by changing Section 7 as follows:
(115 ILCS 5/7) (from Ch. 48, par. 1707)
Sec. 7. Recognition of exclusive bargaining
representatives - unit determination. The Board is empowered
to administer the recognition of bargaining representatives
of employees of public school districts, including employees
of districts which have entered into joint agreements, or
employees of public community college districts, or any State
college or university, and any State agency whose major
function is providing educational services, making certain
that each bargaining unit contains employees with an
identifiable community of interest and that no unit includes
both professional employees and nonprofessional employees
unless a majority of employees in each group vote for
inclusion in the unit.
(a) In determining the appropriateness of a unit, the
Board shall decide in each case, in order to ensure employees
the fullest freedom in exercising the rights guaranteed by
this Act, the unit appropriate for the purpose of collective
bargaining, based upon but not limited to such factors as
historical pattern of recognition, community of interest,
including employee skills and functions, degree of functional
integration, interchangeability and contact among employees,
common supervision, wages, hours and other working conditions
of the employees involved, and the desires of the employees.
Nothing in this Act, except as herein provided, shall
interfere with or negate the current representation rights or
patterns and practices of employee organizations which have
historically represented employees for the purposes of
collective bargaining, including but not limited to the
negotiations of wages, hours and working conditions,
resolutions of employees' grievances, or resolution of
jurisdictional disputes, or the establishment and maintenance
of prevailing wage rates, unless a majority of the employees
so represented expresses a contrary desire under the
procedures set forth in this Act. This Section, however,
does not prohibit multi-unit bargaining. Notwithstanding the
above factors, where the majority of public employees of a
craft so decide, the Board shall designate such craft as a
unit appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining.
The sole appropriate bargaining unit for academic faculty
at the University of Illinois shall be a unit that is
comprised of non-supervisory academic faculty employed more
than half-time and that includes all tenured, tenure-track,
and nontenure-track faculty employed by the board of trustees
of that University in all of its undergraduate, graduate, and
professional schools and degree and non-degree programs,
regardless of current or historical representation rights or
patterns or the application of any other factors. Any
decision, rule, or regulation, promulgated by the Board to
the contrary shall be null and void.
(b) An educational employer shall may voluntarily
recognize a labor organization for collective bargaining
purposes if that organization appears to represent a majority
of employees in the unit. The employer shall post notice of
its intent to so recognize for a period of at least 20 school
days on bulletin boards or other places used or reserved for
employee notices. Thereafter, the employer, if satisfied as
to the majority status of the employee organization, shall
send written notification of such recognition to the Board
for certification. Any dispute regarding the majority status
of a labor organization shall be resolved by the Board which
shall make the determination of majority status.
Within the 20 day notice period, however, any other
interested employee organization may petition the Board to
seek recognition as the exclusive representative of the unit
in the manner specified by rules and regulations prescribed
by the Board, if such interested employee organization has
been designated by at least 15% of the employees in an
appropriate bargaining unit which includes all or some of the
employees in the unit intended to be recognized by the
employer. In such event, the Board shall proceed with the
petition in the same manner as provided in paragraph (c) of
this Section.
(c) A labor organization may also gain recognition as
the exclusive representative by an election of the employees
in the unit. Petitions requesting an election may be filed
with the Board:
(1) by an employee or group of employees or any
labor organizations acting on their behalf alleging and
presenting evidence that 30% or more of the employees in
a bargaining unit wish to be represented for collective
bargaining or that the labor organization which has been
acting as the exclusive bargaining representative is no
longer representative of a majority of the employees in
the unit; or
(2) by an employer alleging that one or more labor
organizations have presented a claim to be recognized as
an exclusive bargaining representative of a majority of
the employees in an appropriate unit and that it doubts
the majority status of any of the organizations or that
it doubts the majority status of an exclusive bargaining
representative.
The Board shall investigate the petition and if it has
reasonable cause to suspect that a question of representation
exists, it shall give notice and conduct a hearing. If it
finds upon the record of the hearing that a question of
representation exists, it shall direct an election, which
shall be held no later than 90 days after the date the
petition was filed. Nothing prohibits the waiving of
hearings by the parties and the conduct of consent elections.
(c-5) The Board shall designate an exclusive
representative for purposes of collective bargaining when the
representative demonstrates a showing of majority interest by
employees in the unit. If the parties to a dispute are
without agreement on the means to ascertain the choice, if
any, of employee organization as their representative, the
Board shall ascertain the employees' choice of employee
organization, on the basis of dues deduction authorization
and other evidence, or, if necessary, by conducting an
election. If either party provides to the Board, before the
designation of a representative, clear and convincing
evidence that the dues deduction authorizations, and other
evidence upon which the Board would otherwise rely to
ascertain the employees' choice of representative, are
fraudulent or were obtained through coercion, the Board shall
promptly thereafter conduct an election. The Board shall also
investigate and consider a party's allegations that the dues
deduction authorizations and other evidence submitted in
support of a designation of representative without an
election were subsequently changed, altered, withdrawn, or
withheld as a result of employer fraud, coercion, or any
other unfair labor practice by the employer. If the Board
determines that a labor organization would have had a
majority interest but for an employer's fraud, coercion, or
unfair labor practice, it shall designate the labor
organization as an exclusive representative without
conducting an election.
(d) An order of the Board dismissing a representation
petition, determining and certifying that a labor
organization has been fairly and freely chosen by a majority
of employees in an appropriate bargaining unit, determining
and certifying that a labor organization has not been fairly
and freely chosen by a majority of employees in the
bargaining unit or certifying a labor organization as the
exclusive representative of employees in an appropriate
bargaining unit because of a determination by the Board that
the labor organization is the historical bargaining
representative of employees in the bargaining unit, is a
final order. Any person aggrieved by any such order issued
on or after the effective date of this amendatory Act of 1987
may apply for and obtain judicial review in accordance with
provisions of the Administrative Review Law, as now or
hereafter amended, except that such review shall be afforded
directly in the Appellate Court of a judicial district in
which the Board maintains an office. Any direct appeal to the
Appellate Court shall be filed within 35 days from the date
that a copy of the decision sought to be reviewed was served
upon the party affected by the decision.
No election may be conducted in any bargaining unit
during the term of a collective bargaining agreement covering
such unit or subdivision thereof, except the Board may direct
an election after the filing of a petition between January 15
and March 1 of the final year of a collective bargaining
agreement. Nothing in this Section prohibits the negotiation
of a collective bargaining agreement covering a period not
exceeding 3 years. A collective bargaining agreement of less
than 3 years may be extended up to 3 years by the parties if
the extension is agreed to in writing before the filing of a
petition under this Section. In such case, the final year of
the extension is the final year of the collective bargaining
agreement. No election may be conducted in a bargaining
unit, or subdivision thereof, in which a valid election has
been held within the preceding 12 month period.
(Source: P.A. 88-1; 89-4, eff. 7-1-95 (eff. date changed from
1-1-96 by P.A. 89-24).)
Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.