2007 California Government Code Article 1. General Provisions

CA Codes (gov:3540-3540.2)

3540.  It is the purpose of this chapter to promote the improvement
of personnel management and employer-employee relations within the
public school systems in the State of California by providing a
uniform basis for recognizing the right of public school employees to
join organizations of their own choice, to be represented by the
organizations in their professional and employment relationships with
public school employers, to select one employee organization as the
exclusive representative of the employees in an appropriate unit, and
to afford certificated employees a voice in the formulation of
educational policy.  This chapter shall not supersede other
provisions of the Education Code and the rules and regulations of
public school employers which establish and regulate tenure or a
merit or civil service system or which provide for other methods of
administering employer-employee relations, so long as the rules and
regulations or other methods of the public school employer do not
conflict with lawful collective agreements.
   It is the further intention of the Legislature that this chapter
shall not restrict, limit, or prohibit the full exercise of the
functions of any academic senate or faculty council established by a
school district in a community college to represent the faculty in
making recommendations to the administration and governing board of
the school district with respect to district policies on academic and
professional matters, so long as the exercise of the functions does
not conflict with lawful collective agreements.
   It is the further intention of the Legislature that any
legislation enacted by the Legislature governing employer-employee
relations of other public employees shall be incorporated into this
chapter to the extent possible.  The Legislature also finds and
declares that it is an advantageous and desirable state policy to
expand the jurisdiction of the board created pursuant to this chapter
to cover other public employers and their employees, in the event
that this legislation is enacted, and if this policy is carried out,
the name of the Educational Employment Relations Board shall be
changed to the "Public Employment Relations Board."



3540.1.  As used in this chapter:
   (a) "Board" means the Public Employment Relations Board created
pursuant to Section 3541.
   (b) "Certified organization" or "certified employee organization"
means an organization which has been certified by the board as the
exclusive representative of the public school employees in an
appropriate unit after a proceeding under Article 5 (commencing with
Section 3544).
   (c) "Confidential employee" means any employee who is required to
develop or present management positions with respect to
employer-employee relations or whose duties normally require access
to confidential information that is used to contribute significantly
to the development of management positions.
   (d) "Employee organization" means any organization which includes
employees of a public school employer and which has as one of its
primary purposes representing those employees in their relations with
that public school employer.  "Employee organization" shall also
include any person of the organization authorized to act on its
behalf.
   (e) "Exclusive representative" means the employee organization
recognized or certified as the exclusive negotiating representative
of certificated or classified employees in an appropriate unit of a
public school employer.
   (f) "Impasse" means that the parties to a dispute over matters
within the scope of representation have reached a point in meeting
and negotiating at which their differences in positions are so
substantial or prolonged that future meetings would be futile.
   (g) "Management employee" means any employee in a position having
significant responsibilities for formulating district policies or
administering district programs.  Management positions shall be
designated by the public school employer subject to review by the
Public Employment Relations Board.
   (h) "Meeting and negotiating" means meeting, conferring,
negotiating, and discussing by the exclusive representative and the
public school employer in a good faith effort to reach agreement on
matters within the scope of representation and the execution, if
requested by either party, of a written document incorporating any
agreements reached, which document shall, when accepted by the
exclusive representative and the public school employer, become
binding upon both parties and, notwithstanding Section 3543.7, is not
subject to subdivision 2 of Section 1667 of the Civil Code.  The
agreement may be for a period of not to exceed three years.
   (i) "Organizational security" is within the scope of
representation, and means either of the following:
   (1) An arrangement pursuant to which a public school employee may
decide whether or not to join an employee organization, but which
requires him or her, as a condition of continued employment, if he or
she does join, to maintain his or her membership in good standing
for the duration of the written agreement.  However, an arrangement
may not deprive the employee of the right to terminate his or her
obligation to the employee organization within a period of 30 days
following the expiration of a written agreement.
   (2) An arrangement that requires an employee, as a condition of
continued employment, either to join the recognized or certified
employee organization, or to pay the organization a service fee in an
amount not to exceed the standard initiation fee, periodic dues, and
general assessments of the organization for the duration of the
agreement, or a period of three years from the effective date of the
agreement, whichever comes first.
   (j) "Public school employee" or "employee" means any person
employed by any public school employer except persons elected by
popular vote, persons appointed by the Governor of this state,
management employees, and confidential employees.
   (k) "Public school employer" or "employer" means the governing
board of a school district, a school district, a county board of
education, a county superintendent of schools, or a charter school
that has declared itself a public school employer pursuant to
subdivision (b) of Section 47611.5 of the Education Code.
   (l) "Recognized organization" or "recognized employee organization"
means an employee organization which has been recognized by an
employer as the exclusive representative pursuant to Article 5
(commencing with Section 3544).
   (m) "Supervisory employee" means any employee, regardless of job
description, having authority in the interest of the employer to
hire, transfer, suspend, lay off, recall, promote, discharge, assign,
reward, or discipline other employees, or the responsibility to
assign work to and direct them, or to adjust their grievances, or
effectively recommend that action, if, in connection with the
foregoing functions, the exercise of that authority is not of a
merely routine or clerical nature, but requires the use of
independent judgment.



3540.2.  (a) A school district that has a qualified or negative
certification pursuant to Section 42131 of the Education Code shall
allow the county office of education in which the school district is
located at least 10 working days to review and comment on any
proposed agreement made between the exclusive representative and the
public school employer, or designated representatives of the
employer, pursuant to this chapter.  The school district shall
provide the county superintendent of schools with all information
relevant to yield an understanding of the financial impact of that
agreement.
   (b) The Superintendent shall develop a format for use by the
appropriate parties in generating the financial information required
pursuant to subdivision (a).
   (c) The county superintendent of schools shall notify the school
district, the county board of education, the district superintendent,
the governing board of the school district, and each parent and
teacher organization of the district within those 10 days if, in his
or her opinion, the agreement reviewed pursuant to subdivision (a)
would endanger the fiscal well-being of the school district.
   (d) A school district shall provide the county superintendent of
schools, upon request, with all information relevant to provide an
understanding of the financial impact of any final collective
bargaining agreement reached pursuant to Section 3543.2.
   (e) A county office of education, or a school district for which
the county board of education serves as the governing board, that has
a qualified or negative certification pursuant to Section 1240 of
the Education Code shall allow the Superintendent at least 10 working
days to review and comment on any proposed agreement or contract
made between the exclusive representative and the public school
employer, or designated representatives of the employer, pursuant to
this chapter.  The county superintendent of schools shall provide the
Superintendent with all information relevant to yield an
understanding of the financial impact of that agreement or contract.
The Superintendent shall notify the county superintendent of
schools, and the county board of education within those 10 days if,
in his or her opinion, the proposed agreement or contract would
endanger the fiscal well-being of the county office.