SECTIONS 100300-100309 - California Statutes

PUBLIC UTILITIES CODE

SECTION 100300-100309

100300. Employees shall have the right to self-organization, to
form, join or assist labor organizations, to bargain collectively
through representatives of their own choosing, and to engage in other
concerted activities for the purpose of collective bargaining or
other mutual aid or protection.

100301. Any question which may arise with respect to whether a
majority of employees in an appropriate unit desire to be represented
by a labor organization shall be submitted to the Director of the
Department of Industrial Relations. In resolving such questions of
representation including the determination of the appropriate unit or
units, petitions, the conduct of hearings and elections, the
director shall apply the relevant federal law and administrative
practice developed under the Labor Management Relations Act of 1947,
as amended, and for this purpose shall adopt appropriate rules and
regulations. The State Conciliation Service shall administer such
rules and regulations and shall provide for a prompt public hearing
and secret ballot election to determine the question of
representation and shall certify the results to the parties. Any
certification of a labor organization to represent or act for the
employees in any collective bargaining unit shall not be subject to
challenge on the grounds that a new substantial question of
representation within such collective bargaining unit exists until
the lapse of one year from the date of certification or the
expiration of any collective bargaining agreement, whichever is
later, except that no collective bargaining agreement shall be
considered to be a bar to representation proceedings for a period of
more than two years.

100302. Whenever a majority of the employees employed by the
district in a unit appropriate for collective bargaining indicate a
desire to be represented by a labor organization and upon
determining, as provided in Section 100301, that said labor
organization represents at least a majority of the employees in the
appropriate unit, the board and the accredited representative of
employees shall bargain in good faith and make all reasonable efforts
to reach agreement on the terms of a written contract governing
wages, hours and working conditions.

100303. (a) A contract or agreement shall not be made with any
labor organization, association, group, or individual that denies
membership on any basis listed in subdivision (a) of Section 12940 of
the Government Code, as those bases are defined in Sections 12926
and 12926.1 of the Government Code. However, the organization may
preclude from membership any individual who advocates the overthrow
of the government by force or violence.
(b) The district shall not discriminate with regard to employment
against any person on any basis listed in subdivision (a) of Section
12940 of the Government Code, as those bases are defined in Sections
12926 and 12926.1 of the Government Code, except as otherwise
provided in Section 12940 of the Government Code.

100304. If, after a reasonable period of time, representatives of
the district and the accredited representatives of the employees fail
to reach agreement on the terms of a written contract governing
wages, hours, pensions and working conditions or the interpretation
or application of the terms of an existing contract, either party may
request mediation services of the State Conciliation Service.

100305. If, after a reasonable period of time, representatives of
the district and the accredited representatives of the employees fail
to reach agreement either on the terms of a written contract
governing wages, hours, pensions and working conditions or the
interpretation or application of the terms of an existing contract,
upon the agreement of both the district and the representatives of
the employees, the dispute may be submitted to an arbitration board
and the decision of the majority of such arbitration board shall be
final and binding. The arbitration board shall be composed of two
representatives of the district and two representatives of the labor
organization, and they shall endeavor to agree upon the selection of
a fifth member. If they are unable to agree the names of five persons
experienced in labor arbitration shall be obtained from the State
Conciliation Service. The labor organization and the district shall,
alternately, strike a name from the list so supplied, and the name
remaining after the labor organization and the district have stricken
four names, shall be designated as the fifth arbitrator and chairman
of the board of arbitration. The labor organization and the district
shall determine by lot who shall first strike a name from the list.
The decision of a majority of the arbitration board shall be final
and binding upon the parties thereto. Each party shall be responsible
for the expense of the presentation of its case. All other expenses
of arbitration shall be borne equally by the parties and said
expenses may include the making of a verbatim record of the
proceedings and transcript of that record.

100306. In the event the district and the representatives of the
employees do not agree to submit any dispute to arbitration as
provided in Section 100305 the State Conciliation Service may be
notified by either party that a dispute exists and there is no
agreement to arbitrate.
Following such notification the State Conciliation Service shall
determine whether or not the dispute may be resolved by the parties
and, if not, the issues concerning which the dispute exists. Upon
such determination the service shall certify its findings to the
Governor of the State of California. The Governor shall, within 10
days of receipt of certification, appoint a factfinding commission
consisting of three persons.
The commission shall immediately convene and inquire into and
investigate the issues in the dispute. The commission shall have
authority to issue subpoenas for the attendance of witnesses and
subpoenas duces tecum for the production of books, documents and
other records. Subpoenas shall be served and enforced in accordance
with Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 1985) of Title 3, Part 4, of
the Code of Civil Procedure. The commission shall report to the
Governor within 30 days of the date of its creation.
After the creation of such a commission, and for 30 days after
such commission has made its report to the Governor, no change,
except by mutual agreement, shall be made by the parties to the
controversy in the conditions out of which the dispute arose, and
service to the public shall be provided.

100307. (a) Chapter 10 (commencing with Section 3500) of Division 4
of Title 1 of the Government Code is not applicable to the district.
(b) The amendments to this section made at the 1995-96 Regular
Session are not intended to modify, and shall not have the effect of
modifying, an existing bargaining unit determination made by the
Department of Industrial Relations pursuant to Section 100301.

100308. County employees and employees of the Santa Clara County
Congestion Management Agency who, on a date or dates determined by
the board of directors, terminate their employment and immediately
thereafter become employees of the district, shall transfer to the
district, and the district shall assume liability for, all of their
accrued and unused vacation, sick leave, personal leave, compensating
time off and STO balances and days of accrued service in accordance
with the records of their former employer in lieu of any payment by
the former employer for those balances. Those employees who were
covered by a county or congestion management agency pension plan
shall be entitled to the same or equivalent rights, options,
privileges, benefits, obligations, accrued service, and status under
the pension plan of the district.

100309. To the extent permitted by law, and until altered or
revoked as provided by law, the district shall grant recognition to
those employee organizations which served as the recognized
representatives of the former county employees described in Section
100308 immediately prior to their employment by the district.
The district shall assume and observe all applicable provisions,
including wages, of existing written memoranda of understanding in
effect between the county and the above recognized labor
organizations for those former county employees described in Section
100308 who are employed by the district in positions which would have
been covered by those memoranda if the employees had remained
employed by the county. This obligation extends only for the
remainder of the term of the respective existing written memoranda of
understanding and to the extent not superseded by a successor
agreement between the district and a recognized labor organization.