Public Act 100-0516
 
HB0622 EnrolledLRB100 06098 RJF 16130 b

    AN ACT concerning government.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 5. The Illinois Public Labor Relations Act is
amended by changing Section 11 as follows:
 
    (5 ILCS 315/11)  (from Ch. 48, par. 1611)
    Sec. 11. Unfair Labor Practice Procedures. Unfair labor
practices may be dealt with by the Board in the following
manner:
    (a) Whenever it is charged that any person has engaged in
or is engaging in any unfair labor practice, the Board or any
agent designated by the Board for such purposes, shall conduct
an investigation of the charge. If after such investigation the
Board finds that the charge involves a dispositive issue of law
or fact the Board shall issue a complaint and cause to be
served upon the person a complaint stating the charges,
accompanied by a notice of hearing before the Board or a member
thereof designated by the Board, or before a qualified hearing
officer designated by the Board at the offices of the Board or
such other location as the Board deems appropriate, not less
than 5 days after serving of such complaint provided that no
complaint shall issue based upon any unfair labor practice
occurring more than six months prior to the filing of a charge
with the Board and the service of a copy thereof upon the
person against whom the charge is made, unless the person
aggrieved thereby did not reasonably have knowledge of the
alleged unfair labor practice or was prevented from filing such
a charge by reason of service in the armed forces, in which
event the six month period shall be computed from the date of
his discharge. Any such complaint may be amended by the member
or hearing officer conducting the hearing for the Board in his
discretion at any time prior to the issuance of an order based
thereon. The person who is the subject of the complaint has the
right to file an answer to the original or amended complaint
and to appear in person or by a representative and give
testimony at the place and time fixed in the complaint. In the
discretion of the member or hearing officer conducting the
hearing or the Board, any other person may be allowed to
intervene in the proceeding and to present testimony. In any
hearing conducted by the Board, neither the Board nor the
member or agent conducting the hearing shall be bound by the
rules of evidence applicable to courts, except as to the rules
of privilege recognized by law.
    (b) The Board shall have the power to issue subpoenas and
administer oaths. If any party wilfully fails or neglects to
appear or testify or to produce books, papers and records
pursuant to the issuance of a subpoena by the Board, the Board
may apply to a court of competent jurisdiction to request that
such party be ordered to appear before the Board to testify or
produce the requested evidence.
    (c) Any testimony taken by the Board, or a member
designated by the Board or a hearing officer thereof, must be
reduced to writing and filed with the Board. A full and
complete record shall be kept of all proceedings before the
Board, and all proceedings shall be transcribed by a reporter
appointed by the Board. The party on whom the burden of proof
rests shall be required to sustain such burden by a
preponderance of the evidence. If, upon a preponderance of the
evidence taken, the Board is of the opinion that any person
named in the charge has engaged in or is engaging in an unfair
labor practice, then it shall state its findings of fact and
shall issue and cause to be served upon the person an order
requiring him to cease and desist from the unfair labor
practice, and to take such affirmative action, including
reinstatement of public employees with or without back pay, as
will effectuate the policies of this Act. If the Board awards
back pay, it shall also award interest at the rate of 7% per
annum. The Board's order may further require the person to make
reports from time to time, and demonstrate the extent to which
he has complied with the order. If there is no preponderance of
evidence to indicate to the Board that the person named in the
charge has engaged in or is engaging in the unfair labor
practice, then the Board shall state its findings of fact and
shall issue an order dismissing the complaint. The Board's
order may in its discretion also include an appropriate
sanction, based on the Board's rules and regulations, and the
sanction may include an order to pay the other party or
parties' reasonable expenses including costs and reasonable
attorney's fee, if the other party has made allegations or
denials without reasonable cause and found to be untrue or has
engaged in frivolous litigation for the purpose of delay or
needless increase in the cost of litigation; the State of
Illinois or any agency thereof shall be subject to the
provisions of this sentence in the same manner as any other
party.
    (d) Until the record in a case has been filed in court, the
Board at any time, upon reasonable notice and in such manner as
it deems proper, may modify or set aside, in whole or in part,
any finding or order made or issued by it.
    (e) A charging party or any person aggrieved by a final
order of the Board granting or denying in whole or in part the
relief sought may apply for and obtain judicial review of an
order of the Board entered under this Act, in accordance with
the provisions of the Administrative Review Law, as now or
hereafter amended, except that such judicial review shall be
afforded directly in the appellate court for the district in
which the aggrieved party resides or transacts business, and
provided, that such judicial review shall not be available for
the purpose of challenging a final order issued by the Board
pursuant to Section 9 of this Act for which judicial review has
been petitioned pursuant to subsection (i) of Section 9. Any
direct appeal to the Appellate Court shall be filed within 35
days from the date that a copy of the decision sought to be
reviewed was served upon the party affected by the decision.
The filing of such an appeal to the Appellate Court shall not
automatically stay the enforcement of the Board's order. An
aggrieved party may apply to the Appellate Court for a stay of
the enforcement of the Board's order after the aggrieved party
has followed the procedure prescribed by Supreme Court Rule
335. The Board in proceedings under this Section may obtain an
order of the court for the enforcement of its order.
    (f) Whenever it appears that any person has violated a
final order of the Board issued pursuant to this Section, the
Board must commence an action in the name of the People of the
State of Illinois by petition, alleging the violation,
attaching a copy of the order of the Board, and praying for the
issuance of an order directing the person, his officers,
agents, servants, successors, and assigns to comply with the
order of the Board. The Board shall be represented in this
action by the Attorney General in accordance with the Attorney
General Act. The court may grant or refuse, in whole or in
part, the relief sought, provided that the court may stay an
order of the Board in accordance with the Administrative Review
Law, pending disposition of the proceedings. The court may
punish a violation of its order as in civil contempt.
    (g) The proceedings provided in paragraph (f) of this
Section shall be commenced in the Appellate Court for the
district where the unfair labor practice which is the subject
of the Board's order was committed, or where a person required
to cease and desist by such order resides or transacts
business.
    (h) The Board through the Attorney General, shall have
power, upon issuance of an unfair labor practice complaint
alleging that a person has engaged in or is engaging in an
unfair labor practice, to petition the circuit court where the
alleged unfair labor practice which is the subject of the
Board's complaint was allegedly committed, or where a person
required to cease and desist from such alleged unfair labor
practice resides or transacts business, for appropriate
temporary relief or restraining order. Upon the filing of any
such petition, the court shall cause notice thereof to be
served upon such persons, and thereupon shall have jurisdiction
to grant to the Board such temporary relief or restraining
order as it deems just and proper.
    (i) If an unfair labor practice charge involves the
interpretation or application of a collective bargaining
agreement and said agreement contains a grievance procedure
with binding arbitration as its terminal step, the Board may
defer the resolution of such dispute to the grievance and
arbitration procedure contained in said agreement.
(Source: P.A. 87-736; 88-1.)
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.