Oklahoma § 70-509.2 - Recognition of employee organization - Bargaining unit

§ 70-509.2. Recognition of employee organization - Bargaining unit

defined - Petition for election - Conduct of election.

A. The board of education shall recognize an employee

organization designated by an election of the employees in an

appropriate bargaining unit as the exclusive representative of all

the employees in such unit. The members of an employee organization

shall be employees as defined in paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 of this

subsection and Section 1-116 of this title. The recognition of such

employee organization shall be made by the board no later than

fourteen (14) days after the election. Any person who desires not

to be represented by any organization may so state in writing to his

or her board of education. Appropriate bargaining units are defined

as follows; however, such definition shall not be construed, of

itself, as requiring that bargaining units engage in bargaining or

act to disengage from bargaining:

1. Employees who are employed and certified as principals and

assistant principals and who have responsibilities for the

supervision of classroom teachers shall constitute an appropriate

unit;

2. All other employees who are required by the position in

which employed to be certified as teachers as that term is defined

in Section 1-116 of this title and who do not hold supervisory

authority with respect to other teachers in the district shall

constitute an appropriate unit; and

3. All employees who are not required by their job description

to be a principal, certified teacher, superintendent or other

certified or noncertified administrator shall constitute a separate

bargaining unit. Provided that, employees with access to

confidential, labor relations information of the school district, or

managerial employees whose responsibilities include making

employment recommendations to the superintendent and for which their

position does not require a certificate, shall be excluded from this

or other bargaining units. Also excluded is any employee position

agreed to be excluded from the bargaining unit by the employee

organization and the school district.

Provided, if employees categorized according to paragraphs 2 and

3 of this subsection were organized for bargaining as a single unit

as of April 14, 1986, or are at any time employed in a district

having fewer than seventy-five employees in the two categories taken

together, the employees may, for such time as a majority of the

employees in each category indicate by secret ballot vote they share

a single community of interest, constitute a single appropriate

unit. Further provided, any final judgment of the Supreme Court

denying such community of interest in any school district shall have

the effect of rendering inappropriate all units, in whatever school

districts they exist, which include employees of both categories.

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 70. Schools

B. 1. Within seven (7) business days of receiving a sealed

packet containing an employee petition filed by or on behalf of

thirty-five percent (35%) or more of the employees in a unit, such

petition calling for an election to determine which, if any,

employee organization represents the employees in a bargaining unit,

the board shall arrange for verification that there are a sufficient

number of correct names to constitute at least thirty-five percent

(35%) of the employees in the unit. Such arrangements shall include

the transmitting of the sealed packet and a list of employees

eligible to be included in the bargaining unit to the individual

designated pursuant to the provisions of paragraph 2 of this

subsection.

2. The petition calling for the secret ballot election shall

contain only the names of employees of the bargaining unit who have

signed and dated the petition. Within thirty (30) days of receipt

of the sealed packet by the district court judge in and for the

county in which the school district has its main office, the sealed

packet shall be opened and the petition shall be verified by an

individual designated by the district judge of such court for the

county in which the school district has its main office. Upon

verification of the number of signatures on the petition, the

district court judge shall notify in writing the district board of

education and any employee organization that has requested notice of

the verification. Under no circumstances shall the individual so

designated reveal the names of employees who signed or did not sign

the petition. If an employee has signed more than one petition, the

name of the employee shall be removed from each petition.

3. The period of time for signing of a recognition petition

shall commence upon receipt of written notification by the school

board from an organization indicating that it intends to circulate a

petition and shall cease thirty (30) days thereafter. Provided, if

an organization recognized as representative of a unit for

bargaining is being challenged for discontinuation of representation

as provided in paragraph 7 of subsection C of this section or is

being challenged by another organization seeking recognition, the

period for signing shall commence on the first day of February and

end on the last day of that same February.

C. 1. Not less than forty-five (45) days nor more than sixty

(60) days after receipt of notification that the petition has been

verified as sufficient, a secret ballot election shall be held to

determine which, if any, employee organization shall represent the

unit. No election shall be held for a unit within which a valid

election was held in the preceding two (2) years.

On or after March 2, 1995, the board shall recognize within ten

(10) days an organization which has obtained signed authorization

from a majority of the employees eligible to be included in the unit

but has not been recognized. No election shall be held for such

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 70. Schools

unit within two (2) years of recognition. An appropriate election

ballot shall be printed for this election, which contains the names

of all employee organizations having presented a petition verified

as signed by at least thirty-five percent (35%) of the employees

eligible to be in the unit to represent or currently recognized as

representing the unit; provided, no such organization shall be shown

on the ballot unless the organization pays to the board a filing fee

of Two Hundred Fifty Dollars ($250.00). The ballot shall also

provide an option whereby any employee of the unit may indicate a

preference that the unit not be represented by any organization.

Every organization that receives at least fifteen percent (15%) of

the vote in the election shall be reimbursed the Two Hundred Fifty

Dollars ($250.00) by the board. The board shall use any remaining

filing fee money to help offset the cost of the validation process

of the petition, if any, as well as any election costs incurred.

2. When none of the choices on the ballot receives a majority

of the votes, a runoff election shall be conducted on the fourteenth

day following the first election between the two choices which

received the largest number of votes in the preceding election.

3. The employee organization or organizations and the school

board shall, by agreement, determine the method by which each

election shall be conducted. All costs incurred in an election

shall be shared equally by all parties involved.

If no agreement can be reached by thirty (30) days prior to the

election, the board of education shall notify the county election

board of the county in which the board is located of such fact, and

the following method for conducting the secret ballot election shall

be followed and conducted by the county election board:

a.

At the time of such notice, the board of education

shall provide to the county election board:

(1) a list of all the polling places for the

election, such list to include every middle

school or junior high school and the central

administration office in the district;

(2) a list of names of all the persons eligible to

vote in the election, such list to be in

alphabetical order and duplicated in such number

that there shall be one for each polling place,

plus an additional five copies;

(3) the names of each organization entitled to have

its name appear on the ballot; and

(4) the date of the election which shall not be a

special election date specified by subsection B

of Section 3-101 of Title 26 of the Oklahoma

Statutes.

b.

Ballots for the election shall be printed by the

county election board in the same manner as for other

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 70. Schools

c.

d.

e.

f.

g.

h.

elections conducted by the county election board,

insofar as is possible. The names of organizations

shall be listed on the ballot in the order in which

said names are furnished to the county election board

by the board of education. The option specifying that

no organization shall represent the employee

bargaining unit shall be listed last on the ballot, in

such language as may be specified by the board.

The secretary of the county election board shall

appoint an inspector, judge and clerk for each polling

place. The inspector, judge and clerk shall be

selected from among the regular precinct officials in

the county.

Polling places shall be open from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00

p.m. on the day of the election. Any eligible person

who appears to vote no later than 7:00 p.m. shall be

entitled to vote.

Eligible voters may vote after signing their

signatures beside their names on the list of names of

all the persons eligible to vote in the election. The

voter shall place his or her ballot in the ballot box

in the presence of the inspector.

Each organization entitled to have its name appear on

the ballot shall be permitted to appoint one

challenger at each polling place. Each such

challenger shall be properly identified as such, and

shall be limited to inquiring of a prospective voter,

said prospective voter's name, address, job

classification and work site. The challenger may

challenge the right of any prospective voter to vote

by so informing the judge. Upon being so challenged,

the prospective voter may vote if, after being

informed by the judge of such a challenge, the voter

signs his or her signature beside his or her name on

the list of names of all the persons eligible to vote

in the election. If same occurs, the judge shall

write the words "Challenged by _____" beside the

voter's signature.

The county election board shall certify in writing the

results of the election to the board of education on

the day following the election and on the same day

shall mail a copy of the certification to all employee

organizations that have requested copies of the

certification.

Costs of the election shall be paid to the county

election board by the board of education. The costs

shall include the regular salaries of the inspector,

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 70. Schools

judge, and clerk, in addition to all other necessary

and reasonable costs. Such costs shall include

compensation for members of the county election board,

including the secretary.

i.

Anyone guilty of voting more than one time in the

election will be guilty of a misdemeanor and subject

to a fine of Two Hundred Dollars ($200.00) or thirty

(30) days in the county jail.

4. No employee shall use regularly scheduled duty time for

campaign purposes.

5. A list of the employees eligible to vote in the election

including their names, addresses, phone numbers, job classification

and work site shall be provided not less than fourteen (14) days

before the election to each organization listed on the official

ballot.

6. Any board or organization challenging the results of any

election held pursuant to the provisions of this section shall post

with the district court a bond of One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00)

which shall be forfeited if the court finds that the challenge is in

bad faith.

7. In any February more than two (2) years after recognition of

an organization pursuant to the provisions of this section and upon

the receipt of a petition calling for discontinuation of

representation signed by thirty-five percent (35%) of the employees

eligible to be included in the unit, a board shall call an election

to determine whether the members of a unit wish to discontinue being

represented for bargaining. If a majority of the votes cast are

votes to discontinue representation, efforts to gain recognition by

any organization shall be prohibited for a period of two (2) years

commencing with the expiration of the contract then in force. The

ballots used in such election shall, without reference to any

organization by name, offer the single choice of continued

representation or discontinuation of representation.

Added by Laws 1971, c. 325, § 2. Amended by Laws 1978, c. 221, § 1,

emerg. eff. April 24, 1978; Laws 1982, c. 102, § 1; Laws 1986, c.

130, § 1, emerg. eff. April 14, 1986; Laws 1989, c. 260, § 1; Laws

1993, c. 100, § 1, eff. July 1, 1993; Laws 1994, c. 345, § 2, eff.

July 1, 1994; Laws 1995, c. 1, § 28, emerg. eff. March 2, 1995; Laws

2000, c. 358, § 13, eff. July 1, 2000; Laws 2008, c. 439, § 7, eff.

July 1, 2008; Laws 2014, c. 124, § 24, eff. July 1, 2014.

NOTE: Laws 1994, c. 190, § 1 repealed by Laws 1995, c. 1, § 40,

emerg. eff. March 2, 1995.

§70-509.2a. Bargaining unit determination of bargaining election

dispute - Procedure - Appeal.

A. In the event of a bargaining unit determination or a

bargaining election dispute, the following procedure shall apply:

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 70. Schools

1. In the event of a bargaining election dispute, within seven

(7) calendar days of receipt of verification of number of signatures

on the petition from the county election board or the receipt of

election results from the county election board or other

organization agreed upon by the parties to conduct the election,

either party shall give notice in writing of a dispute and the facts

on which the dispute is based to the other parties involved, and the

State Superintendent of Public Instruction requesting appointment of

a dispute resolution committee. In the event of a bargaining unit

determination dispute either party shall give notice in writing of a

dispute and the facts on which the dispute is based to the other

parties involved, and the State Superintendent of Public Instruction

requesting appointment of a dispute resolution committee. The

status quo that existed between the parties prior to the incident

giving rise to the dispute shall be maintained through the

resolution of the dispute including district court proceedings

unless the court orders otherwise upon proper application by a

party; any election scheduled pursuant to a disputed petition shall

be stayed pending resolution of the dispute including district court

proceedings;

2. Within ten (10) days of receipt of notification that a

dispute resolution committee is needed, the State Superintendent of

Public Instruction shall form a dispute resolution committee

consisting of three (3) members selected at random from the list of

fact-finders maintained by the State Board of Education pursuant to

Section 509.7 of Title 70 of the Oklahoma Statutes. The State

Superintendent shall notify the members of the committee of their

selection and set a date for the committee's first meeting to be

held no later than seven (7) calendar days following selection of

the committee. The committee shall elect a chair at its first

meeting;

3. Within five (5) calendar days after the selection of the

chair, the representatives of the parties involved in the dispute

shall present to the members of the committee written comments on

the issues related to the dispute. Each party shall furnish the

other parties copies of documents presented to the committee.

Within fifteen (15) calendar days of selection of the chair, the

chair shall convene the committee for a meeting with the

representatives of the parties. Within twenty (20) calendar days of

selection of the chair, the committee shall present its findings and

recommendations in writing to the board of education and other

parties involved in the dispute;

4. If any party decides to reject the committee's

recommendations the party must, within seven (7) days after receipt

of the committee's written recommendation, request a meeting of the

parties involved in the dispute. At the meeting the parties shall

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 70. Schools

exchange written statements expressing their rationale for rejecting

any recommendation and shall attempt to clarify differences;

5. At any time following issuance of the dispute resolution

committee's findings and recommendations but prior to the initiation

of judicial review, the committee shall provide necessary

clarification to all parties at the request of any party. The

committee shall provide written clarification within ten (10)

calendar days of the request;

6. The local board shall file a copy of the written findings

and recommendations, including any written clarifications, of the

dispute resolution committee with the Office of the State

Superintendent of Public Instruction. If the effort to resolve

differences is successful, the parties shall forward a copy of their

agreement to the State Superintendent of Public Instruction. If the

effort to resolve differences is unsuccessful, the local board of

education shall notify the State Superintendent of Public

Instruction in writing of the parties' inability to agree;

7. Within fifteen (15) calendar days of the date of

notification of the parties' inability to agree any party may appeal

for judicial review of the committee's findings and recommendations

in the district court of the county in which the administrative

office of the school district is located. The review shall be

conducted by the court without a jury and shall be confined to the

written record consisting of the dispute resolution committee's

findings and recommendations, written statements furnished to the

dispute resolution committee by the parties, and written statements

exchanged among the parties as required in this section. In cases

of alleged irregularities in procedures required in this section,

the court may take testimony. The court, upon request or upon its

own motion, shall hear oral argument and receive written briefs; and

8. The court shall accept the dispute resolution committee's

findings and order the parties to comply with the dispute resolution

committee's recommendations if the findings and recommendations are

found to be valid and the proceedings are found to be free of

prejudicial error to any party. Provided the court may enter an

order overruling the committee's findings and recommendations, in

whole or in part, and order its resolution of the dispute, if the

court finds that the committee's findings, inferences, conclusions,

or decisions are:

a.

in violation of constitutional provisions,

b.

in excess of the authority of the committee,

c.

made upon unlawful procedure,

d.

affected by other error of law,

e.

clearly erroneous in view of the reliable, material,

probative, and competent evidence, including matters

properly noticed by the committee, upon examination

and consideration of the entire record as submitted

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 70. Schools

but without otherwise substituting its judgment as to

the weight of the evidence for that of the committee

on question of fact,

f.

arbitrary or capricious, or

g.

lacking findings of fact upon issues essential to the

decision.

The court's final order shall be issued no later than sixty (60)

days following the date the appeal is filed.

B. An aggrieved party without a motion for a new trial may

secure a review of any final judgment of a district court under this

section by appeal to the Oklahoma Supreme Court. The appeal shall

be taken in the manner and time provided by law for appeal to the

Supreme Court from the district court in civil actions.

Added by Laws 1994, c. 190, § 3, eff. July 1, 1994.