A petition can be filed with the Board by any public employee, group of public employees, or employee organization claiming to represent a majority of the employees in the proposed bargaining unit. The petitioner must have a certain percentage of individuals showing of interest to continue the Petition Process. When filing a petition, you must choose the type of petition and the purpose.
The Petition Process
- Petition Filed: Petition filed with the State Board of Mediation by the certified representative or the public employer along with a description of the present certified bargaining unit and the date of that certification; the purpose of the amendment of certification; and a statement by the petitioner setting forth reasons as to why amendment is requested.
- Review of Petition: Petition is reviewed for completeness and accuracy. Research is done to check for any previous cases filed with the Board.
- Request for information: The State Board of Mediation will notify the other party(s) of the Amendment of Certification petition having been filed and allow them to submit any comments they have on the filing of the petition.
The State Board of Mediation shall request information from the union to ensure that certain criteria are met to assist them in investigating the petition. The union must show that there has been substantial continuity between the pre-affiliation and post-affiliation union and whether union members had an adequate opportunity to vote on affiliation. - Upon receipt of requested information: Once the State Board of Mediation has received the requested information from the union(s), it will make a determination as to whether the required criteria have been met.
- Criteria met: If the required criteria have been met, the State Board of Mediation will issue an Amendment of Certification indicating who the surviving certified bargaining representative is.
- If Criteria not met: f the criteria are not met, the Board will either set the case for a hearing before the full Board or will dismiss the petition until the requested information can be submitted.
- Dismissals/Hearings
Dismissals: If the petitioning party has not met the required criteria, their petition will be dismissed by the Chairman.
Hearings: When the parties cannot come to an agreement it will be necessary to schedule for a hearing.
Schedule Hearing: Two (2) Board Members (one employee member and one employer member), the parties, and a court reporter will be contacted by the State Board of Mediation to schedule a hearing. A Notice of Hearing will be issued by the Chairman at least ten (10) business days prior to the hearing to the parties, court reporter and board members. - Hearings: Hearings conducted by the State Board of Mediation are considered investigatory and not adversary. They are held to develop a full and complete factual record with which the board can base their decision.
- Decision: The Board’s decision will be issued to all parties.