[Ord. No. 13-2058 §1, 9-16-2013]
A.
Any labor organization seeking designation as a bargaining agent
to represent those police officers of the City of the rank of sergeant
and lower (hereinafter referred to for convenience as "employees")
is to submit a specific, written description of the bargaining unit
sought, together with specific exclusions (the "petition"), via certified
mail to the City Clerk addressed to the Mayor. The petition must be
accompanied by a showing of interest of not less than forty-five percent
(45%) of the employees alleged to be appropriate. Any evidence submitted
as a showing of interest must contain legible signatures, and each
signature must be dated by the employee. The evidence submitted as
a showing of interest must indicate the employee's desire for the
named labor organization to act as his or her exclusive bargaining
representative. Such showing of interest shall be dated not more than
sixty (60) days prior to the filing of the petition.
B.
The petition must also be accompanied by an up-to-date financial
disclosure report, on a form adopted by the City Administrator, which
shall require the reporting of the following information: all income
derived by the labor organization; a list of officers and authorized
representatives for the labor organization, with the amount of their
annual salaries and benefits; the detailed expenses incurred by the
labor organization; the method for determination of dues and/or fees
and/or assessments for members of the labor organization; a detailed
listing of all political contributions and contributions to political
action committees; and such other financial information deemed appropriate
by the City Administrator.
C.
Within fourteen (14) days of receipt, the Mayor shall appoint a three-person
Recognition Committee (consisting of the City Administrator and two
(2) members appointed from among the members of the Board of Aldermen)
which shall consider the appropriateness of the requested unit and,
on behalf of the City, either:
D.
The labor organization submitting the petition can either accept
the Recognition Committee's decision regarding the bargaining unit
or appeal to the Board of Aldermen within fourteen (14) days of the
date of the Committee's decision.
E.
Appeal; hearing.
1.
Any appeal taken pursuant to Subsection D above must be sent via certified mail and must be received by the City Clerk within fourteen (14) days after the Recognition Committee's decision is issued. The Board of Aldermen's decision with respect to the appropriateness of the bargaining unit shall be final and binding. If the Board of Aldermen feels such is warranted and appropriate, it may conduct a hearing on the matter. In such event, a notice shall be served at least fourteen (14) days in advance of the hearing on all interested parties and shall include:
2.
Hearings under this process are considered investigatory and not adversarial. Any party shall have the right to appear in person, by counsel, or by other representative, to call, examine and cross-examine witnesses and to introduce into the record documentary or other relevant evidence, except that the participation of any party shall be limited to the extent permitted by the hearing officer. The hearing officer (appointed pursuant to Section 125.020(H), below) shall have the power to issue subpoenas for the production of documents and/or the testimony of necessary witnesses.
3.
Any party shall be entitled, upon request, to a reasonable period
prior to the close of the hearing for oral argument, which shall be
included in the official transcript of the hearing. Any party shall
be entitled, upon request made before the close of the hearing, to
file a brief of proposed findings, conclusions or both, with the hearing
officer, who may fix a reasonable time for such filing, but not in
excess of thirty (30) days, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal
holidays, from the close of the hearing. Requests for further extensions
of time for good cause shown shall be made to the hearing officer.
All testimonial proceedings before the hearing officer shall be transcribed
by a certified court reporter.
4.
Following the hearing, the Board of Aldermen shall make a determination
conclusively resolving any unresolved issues, which shall be final
and binding and not subject to review. If the Board of Aldermen orders
an election, the order shall contain the date of the election and
set forth the date of eligibility for purposes of voting in the election.
The date of the election shall not be less than thirty (30) days from
the date an election is directed.
G.
All costs and fees of the hearing officer shall be borne equally by the City and the petitioning labor organization. The deposit provisions of Section 125.030(D) shall be applicable, by analogy.
H.
The hearing officer shall be agreed to by the City and the petitioning
labor organization, but, if no such person can be agreed upon, the
hearing officer shall be appointed by the Mayor; provided that the
hearing officer shall be either a retired judge; an arbitrator on
the roster of FMCS; or a retired employee of the NLRB.
[Ord. No. 13-2058 §1, 9-16-2013]
A.
Within forty-five (45) days after establishing the appropriate bargaining
unit, there will be a secret ballot election to determine whether
the majority of employees in the bargaining unit want to be represented
by the labor organization for purposes of collective bargaining.
B.
No labor organization will be recognized as representing any employee
by any other means.
C.
The election will be held by secret ballot. The ballot may be on
a form substantially similar to the form utilized by the National
Labor Relations Board for conducting union elections, or as follows:
|
Shall [insert name of petitioning labor organization here] be
recognized as the bargaining agent for the employees of the [describe
bargaining unit as recognized by the City]?
| ||
|---|---|---|
|
_____ YES
|
_____NO
| |
D.
The election will be conducted by the hearing officer (appointed pursuant to Section 125.020(H), above) The cost of such an election (including, but not limited to the costs and fees of the hearing officer) shall be borne equally by both the City and the petitioning labor organization. A deposit equal to one-half (1/2) of the estimated cost shall be deposited by each party and shall be held by the City in a specially designated account of the City. If additional deposits are required, the City shall so notify the petitioning labor organization and one-half (1/2) of such additional amounts shall be deposited by each party within ten (10) days of notice by the City. Should the petitioning labor organization fail to make a deposit required hereunder, the petition shall be dismissed.
E.
After the election has concluded, the hearing officer will immediately
and publicly count the ballots and issue a report on the election
indicating how many ballots were cast for representation by the labor
organization and how many votes were cast against such representation.
F.
Disputes; hearings.
1.
Any disputes concerning the election must be referred, in writing,
for decision to the Board of Aldermen for consideration within seven
(7) days of the election. If the Board of Aldermen feels such is warranted
and appropriate, it may conduct a hearing on the matter. In such event,
a notice shall be served at least fourteen (14) days in advance of
the hearing on all interested parties and shall include:
2.
Hearings under this process are considered investigatory and not adversarial. Any party shall have the right to appear in person, by counsel, or by other representative, to call, examine and cross-examine witnesses and to introduce into the record documentary or other relevant evidence, except that the participation of any party shall be limited to the extent permitted by the hearing officer. The hearing officer (appointed pursuant to Section 125.020(H), above) shall have the power to issue subpoenas for the production of documents and/or the testimony of necessary witnesses. All costs and fees of the hearing officer shall be borne equally by the City and the petitioning labor organization. The deposit provisions of Section 125.030(D) shall be applicable, by analogy.
3.
Any party shall be entitled, upon request, to a reasonable period
prior to the close of the hearing for oral argument, which shall be
included in the official transcript of the hearing. Any party shall
be entitled, upon request made before the close of the hearing, to
file a brief of proposed findings, conclusions or both with the hearing
officer, who may fix a reasonable time for such filing, but not in
excess of thirty (30) days, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal
holidays, from the close of the hearing. Requests for further extensions
of time for good cause shown shall be made to the hearing officer.
All testimonial proceedings before the hearing officer shall be transcribed
by a certified court reporter.
4.
Following the hearing, the Board of Aldermen shall make a determination
conclusively resolving any unresolved issues, which shall be final
and binding and not subject to review. If the Board of Aldermen orders
a rerun election, the order shall contain the date of the election
and set forth the date of eligibility for purposes of voting in the
election. The date of the election shall not be less than thirty (30)
days from the date an election is directed.
6.
The decision of the Board of Aldermen on such disputes will
be final and binding.
G.
If there is no dispute concerning the election, then the results
of the election will become final seven (7) days after the report
on the election is issued.
H.
After the results of the election become final, if a majority of
the members of the bargaining unit voted to be represented by the
labor organization, the Board of Aldermen will recognize the labor
organization as representing the employees of the bargaining unit.
I.
No labor organization may seek to represent any bargaining unit (or
portion of any bargaining unit) by secret ballot election more than
once in any consecutive twenty-four-month period.
J.
In the event that the majority of the employees in a designated bargaining
unit determine that they no longer wish to be represented by a recognized
labor organization, they may revoke their designation of the labor
organization by tendering a signed and dated petition for revocation
to the Board of Aldermen. Upon receipt of such a petition, the Mayor
will designate a three-person Recognition Committee (consisting of
the City Administrator and two (2) members appointed from among the
members of the Board of Aldermen) to determine if the petition to
revoke representation is authentic. Upon the report of the Recognition
Committee, if the petition is determined to be authentic, the Board
of Aldermen shall then revoke recognition of the labor organization
as bargaining agent for that bargaining unit.
[Ord. No. 13-2058 §1, 9-16-2013]
A.
In the event that the majority of members of the bargaining unit
vote to be represented by the labor organization for purposes of collective
bargaining, a City negotiator, designated by the Mayor and approved
by the Board of Aldermen, will meet with the labor organization to
confer and discuss wages, benefits and other terms and conditions
of employment, with the goal of reaching a mutually satisfactory proposed
collective bargaining agreement to be submitted to the Board of Aldermen
for approval.
1.
If the City negotiator and the labor organization reach a tentative
agreement on a proposed collective bargaining agreement, the proposed
agreement will be submitted to the Board of Aldermen as an agenda
item for consideration on their next regularly scheduled meeting.
At that meeting, the Board of Aldermen will approve, reject or hold
the proposed collective bargaining agreement open for further discussion.
2.
If the City negotiator and the labor organization are unable to reach an agreement on the terms of a proposed collective bargaining agreement after substantial negotiations, the City negotiator may unilaterally submit the City negotiator's proposed collective bargaining agreement to the Board of Aldermen for consideration as set forth in Subsection (A)(1), above.
3.
The decision of the Board of Aldermen with regard to approving
or rejecting a proposed collective bargaining agreement shall be final
and binding.
B.
The labor organization shall file an annual financial disclosure
report with the City Clerk no later than the last business day of
the City's fiscal year on a form adopted by the City Administrator
which shall require the reporting of the following information: all
income derived from the bargaining unit in the City; a list of officers
and authorized representatives for the labor organization, with the
amount of their annual salaries and benefits; the detailed expenses
incurred in providing representation to the employees in the bargaining
unit in the City; the method for determination of dues and/or fees
and/or assessments for employees of the bargaining unit in the City;
a detailed listing of all political contributions and contributions
to political action committees; and such other financial information
deemed appropriate by the City Administrator.
[Ord. No. 13-2058 §1, 9-16-2013]
In accordance with Section 105.530, RSMo., strikes and other
unlawful conduct by any employee, whether individually or in concert
with others (including sympathy, unfair labor practice or wildcat
strikes), sit downs, slow downs, work stoppages, boycotts, any acts
honoring a picket line, or any other acts that interfere with the
City's operations are prohibited.
[Ord. No. 13-2058 §1, 9-16-2013]
Should the City, the labor organization or anyone else challenge Ordinance No. 13-2058 and/or any action taken pursuant to the provisions of Sections 125.020 to 125.050 above, the City, if it is the prevailing party in such action, shall be entitled to its attorney's fees and costs incurred in pursuit/defense of such action.
