§ 3.70.120. Petitions for certification.

A.

A petition for certification must be filed by the municipality, an employee of the municipality, or an employee organization acting on behalf of employees of the municipality.

B.

A petition for certification shall be in writing and signed, and shall be sworn to before a notary public or other person duly authorized by law to administer oaths and take acknowledgments that its contents are true and correct to the best of his or her knowledge and belief. An original and three copies of the petition shall be filed with the board. If the petition concerns positions in an existing bargaining unit, it must be filed:

(1)

Within the "open window" period 180 days to 150 days prior to expiration of a collective bargaining agreement which does not exceed three years in duration; or

(2)

Following expiration of a collective bargaining agreement if no successor agreement has become effective.

Petitions concerning new positions or new bargaining units may be filed at any time.

C.

A petition for certification filed by an employee of the municipality or an employee organization shall contain the following:

(1)

A description of the bargaining unit claimed to be appropriate for purposes of exclusive representation by the petitioner that generally identifies the work locations and the classification codes and titles of employees to be included or excluded and the approximate number of employees in the unit;

(2)

A statement that 30 percent of the permanent and probationary employees in the proposed bargaining unit wish to be represented by the petitioner for collective bargaining purposes, together with the original authorization forms or cards signed by such employees. The authorization forms or cards must

(a)

Be signed and dated by the employees during the 120 days immediately preceding the filing of the petition and include the employees' job classification codes and titles;

(b)

authorize the petitioner to represent the employees for collective bargaining purposes; and

(c)

be mailed or delivered to the board in a separately sealed envelope attached to the petition.

(3)

The name, address, telephone number and affiliation, if any, of the petitioner;

(4)

A copy of the petitioner's constitution, bylaws and current roster of officers and representatives; and

(5)

The signature, title and telephone number of the petitioner's representative.

D.

A petition for certification filed by the municipality shall contain the following:

(1)

The petitioner's name, address and the approximate number of the petitioner's employees in the desired unit;

(2)

A brief statement that one or more labor or employee organizations have presented to the petitioner a claim to be recognized as the representative of a majority of the employees in the bargaining unit, and that petitioner has a good faith doubt concerning the majority representative of the petitioner's employees.

(3)

A description of the bargaining unit claimed to be appropriate for purposes of exclusive representation that generally identifies the work locations and the classifications of employees to be included or excluded and the approximate number of employees in the unit;

(4)

The names, addresses and telephone numbers, and affiliations, if any, of the organizations and their contact persons making claims for recognition; and

(5)

The signature, title and telephone number of the petitioner's representative.

E.

In addition to the requirements of C. or D. of this section, if a petition for certification proposes to sever a bargaining unit from an existing bargaining unit, the petition must state:

(1)

Why the employees in the proposed bargaining unit are not receiving adequate representation in the existing unit;

(2)

Whether the employees in the proposed bargaining unit are employed in jobs that have traditionally been represented in the same unit;

(3)

Why the employees in the proposed bargaining unit have a community of interest that is not the same as that of the employees in the existing unit;

(4)

How long the employees in the proposed bargaining unit have been represented as part of the existing unit; and

(5)

Why the grant of the petition will not result in excessive fragmentation of the existing bargaining unit or delete a "wall to wall" prior unit designation.

(AR No. 97-180, § 1, 8-19-97)