100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2017 and 2018
SB1954

 

Introduced 2/10/2017, by Sen. Daniel Biss

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
105 ILCS 5/34-3.5
115 ILCS 5/12  from Ch. 48, par. 1712
115 ILCS 5/4.5 rep.

    Amends the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Act. Removes language concerning impasse procedures involving an educational employer whose territorial boundaries are coterminous with those of a city having a population in excess of 500,000. Repeals provisions concerning subjects of collective bargaining with that educational employer. Amends the School Code to make corresponding changes. Effective immediately.


LRB100 08568 MLM 18694 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

SB1954LRB100 08568 MLM 18694 b

1    AN ACT concerning education.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Section
534-3.5 as follows:
 
6    (105 ILCS 5/34-3.5)
7    Sec. 34-3.5. Partnership agreement on advancing student
8achievement; No Child Left Behind Act of 2001.
9    (a) The General Assembly finds that the Chicago Teachers
10Union, the Chicago Board of Education, and the district's chief
11executive officer have a common responsibility beyond their
12statutory collective bargaining relationship to institute
13purposeful education reforms in the Chicago Public Schools that
14maximize the number of students in the Chicago Public Schools
15who reach or exceed proficiency with regard to State academic
16standards and assessments. The General Assembly further finds
17that education reform in the Chicago Public Schools must be
18premised on a commitment by all stakeholders to redefine
19relationships, develop, implement, and evaluate programs, seek
20new and additional resources, improve the value of educational
21programs to students, accelerate the quality of teacher
22training, improve instructional excellence, and develop and
23implement strategies to comply with the federal No Child Left

 

 

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1Behind Act of 2001 (Public Law 107-110).
2    The Chicago Board of Education and the district's chief
3executive officer shall enter into a partnership agreement with
4the Chicago Teachers Union to allow the parties to work
5together to advance the Chicago Public Schools to the next
6level of education reform. This agreement must be entered into
7and take effect within 90 days after the effective date of this
8amendatory Act of the 93rd General Assembly. As part of this
9agreement, the Chicago Teachers Union, the Chicago Board of
10Education, and the district's chief executive officer shall
11jointly file a report with the General Assembly at the end of
12each school year with respect to the nature of the reforms that
13the parties have instituted, the effect of these reforms on
14student achievement, and any other matters that the parties
15deem relevant to evaluating the effectiveness of the agreement.
16    (b) Decisions concerning matters of inherent managerial
17policy necessary to comply with the federal No Child Left
18Behind Act of 2001 (Public Law 107-110), including such areas
19of discretion or policy as the functions of the employer, the
20standards and delivery of educational services and programs,
21the district's overall budget, the district's organizational
22structure, student assignment, school choice, and the
23selection of new employees and direction of employees, and the
24impact of these decisions on individual employees or the
25bargaining unit shall be permissive subjects of bargaining
26between the educational employer and the exclusive bargaining

 

 

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1representative and are within the sole discretion of the
2educational employer to decide to bargain. This subsection (b)
3is exclusive of the parties' obligations and responsibilities
4under Section 4.5 of the Illinois Educational Labor Relations
5Act (provided that any dispute or impasse that may arise under
6this subsection (b) shall be resolved exclusively as set forth
7in subsection (b) of Section 12 of the Illinois Educational
8Labor Relations Act in lieu of a strike under Section 13 of the
9Illinois Educational Labor Relations Act).
10(Source: P.A. 93-3, eff. 4-16-03.)
 
11    Section 10. The Illinois Educational Labor Relations Act is
12amended by changing Section 12 as follows:
 
13    (115 ILCS 5/12)  (from Ch. 48, par. 1712)
14    Sec. 12. Impasse procedures.
15    (a) This subsection (a) applies only to collective
16bargaining between an educational employer that is not a public
17school district organized under Article 34 of the School Code
18and an exclusive representative of its employees. If the
19parties engaged in collective bargaining have not reached an
20agreement by 90 days before the scheduled start of the
21forthcoming school year, the parties shall notify the Illinois
22Educational Labor Relations Board concerning the status of
23negotiations. This notice shall include a statement on whether
24mediation has been used.

 

 

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1    Upon demand of either party, collective bargaining between
2the employer and an exclusive bargaining representative must
3begin within 60 days of the date of certification of the
4representative by the Board, or in the case of an existing
5exclusive bargaining representative, within 60 days of the
6receipt by a party of a demand to bargain issued by the other
7party. Once commenced, collective bargaining must continue for
8at least a 60 day period, unless a contract is entered into.
9    Except as otherwise provided in subsection (b) of this
10Section, if after a reasonable period of negotiation and within
1190 days of the scheduled start of the forth-coming school year,
12the parties engaged in collective bargaining have reached an
13impasse, either party may petition the Board to initiate
14mediation. Alternatively, the Board on its own motion may
15initiate mediation during this period. However, mediation
16shall be initiated by the Board at any time when jointly
17requested by the parties and the services of the mediators
18shall continuously be made available to the employer and to the
19exclusive bargaining representative for purposes of
20arbitration of grievances and mediation or arbitration of
21contract disputes. If requested by the parties, the mediator
22may perform fact-finding and in so doing conduct hearings and
23make written findings and recommendations for resolution of the
24dispute. Such mediation shall be provided by the Board and
25shall be held before qualified impartial individuals. Nothing
26prohibits the use of other individuals or organizations such as

 

 

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1the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service or the American
2Arbitration Association selected by both the exclusive
3bargaining representative and the employer.
4    If the parties engaged in collective bargaining fail to
5reach an agreement within 45 days of the scheduled start of the
6forthcoming school year and have not requested mediation, the
7Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board shall invoke
8mediation.
9    Whenever mediation is initiated or invoked under this
10subsection (a), the parties may stipulate to defer selection of
11a mediator in accordance with rules adopted by the Board.
12    (a-5) This subsection (a-5) applies only to collective
13bargaining between a public school district or a combination of
14public school districts, including, but not limited to, joint
15cooperatives, that is not organized under Article 34 of the
16School Code and an exclusive representative of its employees.
17        (1) Any time 15 days after mediation has commenced,
18    either party may initiate the public posting process. The
19    mediator may initiate the public posting process at any
20    time 15 days after mediation has commenced during the
21    mediation process. Initiation of the public posting
22    process must be filed in writing with the Board, and copies
23    must be submitted to the parties on the same day the
24    initiation is filed with the Board.
25        (2) Within 7 days after the initiation of the public
26    posting process, each party shall submit to the mediator,

 

 

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1    the Board, and the other party in writing the most recent
2    offer of the party, including a cost summary of the offer.
3    Seven days after receipt of the parties' offers, the Board
4    shall make public the offers and each party's cost summary
5    dealing with those issues on which the parties have failed
6    to reach agreement by immediately posting the offers on its
7    Internet website, unless otherwise notified by the
8    mediator or jointly by the parties that agreement has been
9    reached. On the same day of publication by the Board, at a
10    minimum, the school district shall distribute notice of the
11    availability of the offers on the Board's Internet website
12    to all news media that have filed an annual request for
13    notices from the school district pursuant to Section 2.02
14    of the Open Meetings Act. The parties' offers shall remain
15    on the Board's Internet website until the parties have
16    reached and ratified an agreement.
17    (a-10) This subsection (a-10) applies only to collective
18bargaining between a public school district organized under
19Article 34 of the School Code and an exclusive representative
20of its employees.
21        (1) For collective bargaining agreements between an
22    educational employer to which this subsection (a-10)
23    applies and an exclusive representative of its employees,
24    if the parties fail to reach an agreement after a
25    reasonable period of mediation, the dispute shall be
26    submitted to fact-finding in accordance with this

 

 

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1    subsection (a-10). Either the educational employer or the
2    exclusive representative may initiate fact-finding by
3    submitting a written demand to the other party with a copy
4    of the demand submitted simultaneously to the Board.
5        (2) Within 3 days following a party's demand for
6    fact-finding, each party shall appoint one member of the
7    fact-finding panel, unless the parties agree to proceed
8    without a tri-partite panel. Following these appointments,
9    if any, the parties shall select a qualified impartial
10    individual to serve as the fact-finder and chairperson of
11    the fact-finding panel, if applicable. An individual shall
12    be considered qualified to serve as the fact-finder and
13    chairperson of the fact-finding panel, if applicable, if he
14    or she was not the same individual who was appointed as the
15    mediator and if he or she satisfies the following
16    requirements: membership in good standing with the
17    National Academy of Arbitrators, Federal Mediation and
18    Conciliation Service, or American Arbitration Association
19    for a minimum of 10 years; membership on the mediation
20    roster for the Illinois Labor Relations Board or Illinois
21    Educational Labor Relations Board; issuance of at least 5
22    interest arbitration awards arising under the Illinois
23    Public Labor Relations Act; and participation in impasse
24    resolution processes arising under private or public
25    sector collective bargaining statutes in other states. If
26    the parties are unable to agree on a fact-finder, the

 

 

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1    parties shall request a panel of fact-finders who satisfy
2    the requirements set forth in this paragraph (2) from
3    either the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service or
4    the American Arbitration Association and shall select a
5    fact-finder from such panel in accordance with the
6    procedures established by the organization providing the
7    panel.
8        (3) The fact-finder shall have the following duties and
9    powers:
10            (A) to require the parties to submit a statement of
11        disputed issues and their positions regarding each
12        issue either jointly or separately;
13            (B) to identify disputed issues that are economic
14        in nature;
15            (C) to meet with the parties either separately or
16        in executive sessions;
17            (D) to conduct hearings and regulate the time,
18        place, course, and manner of the hearings;
19            (E) to request the Board to issue subpoenas
20        requiring the attendance and testimony of witnesses or
21        the production of evidence;
22            (F) to administer oaths and affirmations;
23            (G) to examine witnesses and documents;
24            (H) to create a full and complete written record of
25        the hearings;
26            (I) to attempt mediation or remand a disputed issue

 

 

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1        to the parties for further collective bargaining;
2            (J) to require the parties to submit final offers
3        for each disputed issue either individually or as a
4        package or as a combination of both; and
5            (K) to employ any other measures deemed
6        appropriate to resolve the impasse.
7        (4) If the dispute is not settled within 75 days after
8    the appointment of the fact-finding panel, the
9    fact-finding panel shall issue a private report to the
10    parties that contains advisory findings of fact and
11    recommended terms of settlement for all disputed issues and
12    that sets forth a rationale for each recommendation. The
13    fact-finding panel, acting by a majority of its members,
14    shall base its findings and recommendations upon the
15    following criteria as applicable:
16            (A) the lawful authority of the employer;
17            (B) the federal and State statutes or local
18        ordinances and resolutions applicable to the employer;
19            (C) prior collective bargaining agreements and the
20        bargaining history between the parties;
21            (D) stipulations of the parties;
22            (E) the interests and welfare of the public and the
23        students and families served by the employer;
24            (F) the employer's financial ability to fund the
25        proposals based on existing available resources,
26        provided that such ability is not predicated on an

 

 

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1        assumption that lines of credit or reserve funds are
2        available or that the employer may or will receive or
3        develop new sources of revenue or increase existing
4        sources of revenue;
5            (G) the impact of any economic adjustments on the
6        employer's ability to pursue its educational mission;
7            (H) the present and future general economic
8        conditions in the locality and State;
9            (I) a comparison of the wages, hours, and
10        conditions of employment of the employees involved in
11        the dispute with the wages, hours, and conditions of
12        employment of employees performing similar services in
13        public education in the 10 largest U.S. cities;
14            (J) the average consumer prices in urban areas for
15        goods and services, which is commonly known as the cost
16        of living;
17            (K) the overall compensation presently received by
18        the employees involved in the dispute, including
19        direct wage compensation; vacations, holidays, and
20        other excused time; insurance and pensions; medical
21        and hospitalization benefits; the continuity and
22        stability of employment and all other benefits
23        received; and how each party's proposed compensation
24        structure supports the educational goals of the
25        district;
26            (L) changes in any of the circumstances listed in

 

 

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1        items (A) through (K) of this paragraph (4) during the
2        fact-finding proceedings;
3            (M) the effect that any term the parties are at
4        impasse on has or may have on the overall educational
5        environment, learning conditions, and working
6        conditions with the school district; and
7            (N) the effect that any term the parties are at
8        impasse on has or may have in promoting the public
9        policy of this State.
10        (5) The fact-finding panel's recommended terms of
11    settlement shall be deemed agreed upon by the parties as
12    the final resolution of the disputed issues and
13    incorporated into the collective bargaining agreement
14    executed by the parties, unless either party tenders to the
15    other party and the chairperson of the fact-finding panel a
16    notice of rejection of the recommended terms of settlement
17    with a rationale for the rejection, within 15 days after
18    the date of issuance of the fact-finding panel's report. If
19    either party submits a notice of rejection, the chairperson
20    of the fact-finding panel shall publish the fact-finding
21    panel's report and the notice of rejection for public
22    information by delivering a copy to all newspapers of
23    general circulation in the community with simultaneous
24    written notice to the parties.
25    (b) (Blank). If, after a period of bargaining of at least
2660 days, a dispute or impasse exists between an educational

 

 

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1employer whose territorial boundaries are coterminous with
2those of a city having a population in excess of 500,000 and
3the exclusive bargaining representative over a subject or
4matter set forth in Section 4.5 of this Act, the parties shall
5submit the dispute or impasse to the dispute resolution
6procedure agreed to between the parties. The procedure shall
7provide for mediation of disputes by a rotating mediation panel
8and may, at the request of either party, include the issuance
9of advisory findings of fact and recommendations.
10    (c) The costs of fact finding and mediation shall be shared
11equally between the employer and the exclusive bargaining
12agent, provided that, for purposes of mediation under this Act,
13if either party requests the use of mediation services from the
14Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, the other party
15shall either join in such request or bear the additional cost
16of mediation services from another source. All other costs and
17expenses of complying with this Section must be borne by the
18party incurring them.
19    (c-5) If an educational employer or exclusive bargaining
20representative refuses to participate in mediation or fact
21finding when required by this Section, the refusal shall be
22deemed a refusal to bargain in good faith.
23    (d) Nothing in this Act prevents an employer and an
24exclusive bargaining representative from mutually submitting
25to final and binding impartial arbitration unresolved issues
26concerning the terms of a new collective bargaining agreement.

 

 

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1(Source: P.A. 97-7, eff. 6-13-11; 97-8, eff. 6-13-11; 98-513,
2eff. 1-1-14.)
 
3    (115 ILCS 5/4.5 rep.)
4    Section 15. The Illinois Educational Labor Relations Act is
5amended by repealing Section 4.5.
 
6    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
7becoming law.