Sec. 31-106. Election of representatives. - Connecticut Statutes

      Sec. 31-106. Election of representatives. (a) Representatives designated or selected for the purposes of collective bargaining by the majority of the employees in a unit appropriate for such purposes or by the majority of the employees voting in an election conducted pursuant to this section shall be the exclusive representative of all the employees in such unit for the purposes of collective bargaining in respect to rates of pay, wages, hours of employment or other conditions of employment, provided any employee, directly or through representatives, shall have the right at any time to present any grievance to his employer. In order to secure to employees the full benefit of this chapter, the board shall decide in each case whether the appropriate unit shall be an employer unit, craft unit, plant unit or any other unit, except that, when the majority of the employees of a craft so decide, the board shall designate such craft as the appropriate unit. In the case of an employer licensed by the Department of Public Health under section 19a-490 and subject to the provisions of this chapter, the board shall not decide (1) that any unit is appropriate if such unit includes both professional employees and employees who are not professional employees unless a majority of such professional employees or of any group of such professional employees as determined by the board vote for inclusion in such unit or (2) that any unit is appropriate if such unit includes more than one group of professional employees unless a majority of each group of such professional employees as determined by the board vote for inclusion in such unit or (3) that any unit of employees is appropriate which includes both supervisors and nonsupervisors in the same unit or (4) that more than five nonsupervisory professional units are appropriate.

      (b) In accordance with such regulations as may be adopted by the board according to the provisions of chapter 54, whenever a petition is filed with the board by an employee or his representative complaining that a question or controversy concerning the representation of employees exists, or by an employer or his representative that there is a question or controversy concerning the representation of employees between two or more labor organizations, the board shall refer the petition to its agent who shall investigate the petition. He shall issue a direction of election and conduct a secret ballot election to determine whether and by which employee organization the employees desire to be represented if he has reasonable cause to believe that a question of representation exists, or issue a recommendation to dismiss the petition if he finds that there is not such reasonable cause, or refer the petition to the board for a hearing without having conducted an election or issuing a recommendation of dismissal, in which event the board shall conduct an appropriate hearing upon due notice. The agent shall report his action to the board. The board shall issue an order confirming the agent's direction of election and certifying the results of the election, or issue an order confirming the agent's recommendation for dismissal, or order a further investigation, or provide for an appropriate hearing upon due notice. Before taking any of the aforesaid actions, the board shall provide the parties with an opportunity to file briefs on the questions at issue and shall fully consider any such briefs filed. After a hearing, the board shall order any of the aforesaid actions on the petition, or shall upon good cause order any other suitable method to determine whether and by which employee organization the employees desire to be represented. The board shall certify the results.

      (c) The board shall have the power to determine who may participate in the election and to establish the rules governing such election, provided no election need be directed by the board solely because of the request of an employer or of employees prompted thereto by their employer, nor shall any individual employed for the duration of a strike or a lockout be eligible to vote in such election, nor shall such election be conducted with the employer's participation, assistance or supervision.

      (d) If, at an election conducted pursuant to this section, three or more nominees for exclusive collective bargaining representatives appear on the ballot and no one of them receives a majority of the votes cast at the election, the two nominees who receive the highest number of votes shall appear on the ballot of a second election to be conducted hereunder, and the one receiving a majority of the votes cast at the second election shall be the exclusive representative of all the employees in such unit for the purpose of collective bargaining in respect to rates of pay, wages, hours of employment or other conditions of employment.

      (e) A labor organization nominated as the representative of employees shall be listed by name on the ballots authorized by subsections (b) and (c) of this section. If, after the hearing provided for in subsection (b) of this section, the board finds that any committee, employee, employee representation plan or association of employees involved is a company union, or if any such committee, employee representation plan or association of employees is found to be a company union, it shall not be listed on the ballots or otherwise recognized as eligible to be the representative of employees under this chapter.

      (f) The board shall have no powers of investigation.

      (g) All elections ordered by the board shall be by secret ballot.

      (1949 Rev., S. 7393; 1951, S. 3033d; 1967, P.A. 497, S. 3; P.A. 77-614, S. 323, 610; P.A. 81-29, S. 1; P.A. 93-381, S. 9, 39; P.A. 95-257, S. 12, 21, 58.)

      History: 1967 act added provisions in Subsec. (a) limiting board's power to decide whether bargaining units are appropriate if employer is licensed by the state department of health; P.A. 77-614 replaced department of health with department of health services, effective January 1, 1979; P.A. 81-29 amended Subsec. (b) to provide that the board's agent shall have increased powers over petitions concerning the election of representatives, while resting final action with the board and to give the board power to adopt regulations controlling the handling of such petitions under Subsec. (b); P.A. 93-381 replaced department of health services with department of public health and addiction services, effective July 1, 1993; P.A. 95-257 replaced Commissioner and Department of Public Health and Addiction Services with Commissioner and Department of Public Health, effective July 1, 1995.

      Cited. 138 C. 277. Cited. 139 C. 99. Cited. 146 C. 93. When unit composed of single employee is deemed to have appointed a collective bargaining agent. 147 C. 344. Union membership alone does not warrant presumption union has been designated as such agent. Id. Cited. 162 C. 579. Board has wide discretion to determine appropriate bargaining units. 175 C. 165.

      Board is without authority to order an election unless an employee complains that a question or controversy exists. 14 CS 72. Employer must recognize a certification rightfully given for a reasonable period of time, regardless of changed conditions. 19 CS 282. In selection of appropriate bargaining unit, board has wide discretion and decision is conclusive unless it is arbitrary or capricious. 22 CS 139. A majority of votes cast in election is sufficient for choice of bargaining representative. Id., 143.

      Cited. 3 Conn. Cir. Ct. 524, 529.

      Subsec. (b):

      Cited. 175 C. 625.

      Subsec. (e):

      Cited. 175 C. 625.