Sec. 5-271. Rights of employees and representatives. Duty of fair representation.

(a) Employees shall have, and shall be protected in the exercise of the right of self-organization, to form, join or assist any employee organization, to bargain collectively through representatives of their own choosing on questions of wages, hours and other conditions of employment, except as provided in subsection (d) of section 5-272, and to engage in other concerted activities for the purpose of collective bargaining or other mutual aid or protection, free from actual interference, restraint or coercion.

(b) When an employee organization has been designated by the State Board of Labor Relations as the representative of the majority of employees in an appropriate unit, that employee organization shall be recognized by the employer as the exclusive bargaining agent for the employees of such unit.

(c) When an employee organization has been designated in accordance with the provisions of this chapter as the exclusive representative of employees in an appropriate unit, it shall have the right to act for and to negotiate agreements covering all employees in the unit and shall be responsible for representing the interests of all such employees without discrimination and without regard to employee organization membership.

(d) When an employee organization has been designated, in accordance with the provisions of this chapter, as the exclusive representative of employees in an appropriate unit, it shall have a duty of fair representation to the members of that unit.

(e) An individual employee at any time may present a grievance to his employer and have the grievance adjusted, without intervention of an employee organization, provided the adjustment shall not be inconsistent with the terms of a collective bargaining agreement then in effect. The employee organization designated as the exclusive representative shall be given prior notice of the grievance and shall be informed of the terms of the settlement.

(f) The employer and such employee organization as has been designated as exclusive representative of employees in an appropriate unit, through appropriate officials or their representatives, shall have the duty to bargain collectively. This duty extends to the obligation to bargain collectively as set forth in subsection (c) of section 5-272.

(P.A. 75-566, S. 2.; P.A. 93-426, S. 2.)

History: P.A. 93-426 inserted new Subsec. (d) to impose a duty of fair representation on employee organizations representing state employees and redesignated existing Subsecs. (d) and (e) as (e) and (f), respectively.

Notation

Cited. 192 C. 539; 201 C. 685.

Cited. 40 CS 381.