SECTIONS 125520-125527 - California Statutes

PUBLIC UTILITIES CODE

SECTION 125520-125527

125520. 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.

125521. 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
Industrial Relations. In resolving such questions of representation,
including the determination of the appropriate unit or units,
petitions, and the conduct of hearings and elections, the director
shall apply the relevant federal law and administrative practice
developed under the Labor Management Relations Act, 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.

125522. 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 125521, that the labor
organization represents at least a majority of the employees in the
appropriate unit, the district 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, pensions, and working conditions.

125523. (a) A contract or agreement shall not be made with any
labor organization, association, or group 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.

125524. 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.

125525. 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.
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 the chair 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 the expenses may include the making
of a verbatim record of the proceedings and transcript of that
record.

125526. If the district and the representatives of the employees do
not agree to submit any dispute to arbitration as provided in
Section 125525, the State Conciliation Service may be notified by
either party that a dispute exists and there is no agreement to
arbitrate.
Following that 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
that determination, the service shall certify its findings to the
Governor. 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 of 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 the commission, and for 30 days after the
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.

125527. If an exclusive collective-bargaining representative is
selected pursuant to Section 125521, the provisions of Chapter 10
(commencing with Section 3500) of Division 4 of Title 1 of the
Government Code are not applicable to the district.