(a) Any employee organization seeking certification as representative of the unit must file a petition with the Labor Relations Administrator stating its name, address, and its desire to be certified. The employee organization must also send a copy of the petition, including a copy of the signatures of the supporting employees on the petition, to the employer. The petition must contain the uncoerced signatures of 30 percent of the employees in the unit, signifying the employees' desire to be represented by the employee organization for purposes of collective bargaining.
(b) If an employee organization has been certified, an employee in the unit may file a petition with the Administrator to decertify the certified representative. The employee must also send a copy of the petition to the employer and the certified representative, not including the names of the supporting employees. The petition must contain the uncoerced signatures of 30 percent of the employees in the unit, alleging that the certified employee organization is no longer the choice of the majority of the employees in the unit.
(c) If a lawful collective bargaining agreement is not in effect, a petition may be filed under this section in September of any year, but not sooner than 22 months after an election held under this section.
(d) If a lawful collective bargaining agreement is in effect, a petition filed under this section must not be entertained unless it is filed during September of the final year of the agreement.
(e) If the Administrator finds that a petition is properly supported and timely filed, the Administrator must hold an election of all eligible employees within a reasonable time, but no later than the next October 20, to determine if and by whom the employees wish to be represented.
(1) The election must be supervised by the Administrator and must be conducted by secret ballot at the time and place that the Administrator directs. The Administrator may retain the services of a State agency responsible for conducting labor elections, or a similarly neutral body, to assist in conducting the election.
(2) The election ballots must contain, as choices to be made by the voter, the name of each petitioning or certified employee organization, the name of any other employee organization showing written proof at least 10 days before the election of at least 10 percent representation of the employees in the unit in the same manner as described in paragraph (a), and a choice that the employee does not desire to be represented by any of the named employee organizations.
(3) The employer and each party to the election may be represented by observers selected under conditions that the Administrator prescribes.
(4) Observers selected under paragraph (3) may challenge for good cause the eligibility of any person to vote in the election. All challenged ballots must be impounded until either the parties agree on the validity of each challenge or the Administrator decides the validity of each challenge. However, if the number of challenges will not determine the outcome of the election, the challenged ballots must be destroyed.
(5) After the polls have been closed, the Administrator must count all valid ballots cast in the presence of the observers.
(6) The Administrator must immediately prepare and serve on the employer and each party a report certifying the results of the election. If an employee organization receives the votes of a majority of the employees who voted, the Administrator must certify that organization as the exclusive agent.
(7) If no employee organization receives the votes of a majority of the employees who voted, the Administrator must not certify a representative. Unless a majority of the employees who vote choose "no representative," a runoff election must be conducted. The runoff election must contain the 2 choices that received the largest and second largest number of votes in the original election.
(f) The Administrator's certification of results is final unless, within 7 days after service of the report and the certification, any party serves on all other parties and files with the Administrator objections to the election. All objections must be verified and contain a concise statement of facts constituting the grounds for each objection. The Administrator must investigate all objections and, if substantial factual issues exist, must hold a hearing. Otherwise, the Administrator may decide the matter without a hearing. The Administrator may invite, either by rule or by invitation, written or oral argument to assist in deciding the merits of the objections. If the Administrator finds that the election was conducted in substantial conformity with this Article, the Administrator must confirm the certification initially issued. If the Administrator finds that the election was not held in substantial conformity with this Article, then the Administrator must hold another election under this section.
(g) The County must pay the cost of conducting each election. (1996 L.M.C., ch. 21, § 1; 2001 L.M.C., ch. 15, § 1.)