Home < Policies, Employee & Labor Relations < Labor Relations and Collective Bargaining < Background on Labor Relations and Collective Bargaining at the University < The Decertification Process
HEERA provides that a petition may be filed with PERB requesting it to investigate and decide the question of whether the employees wish to decertify an exclusive representative. Such a petition must allege that the employees in the unit no longer desire the particular union as their exclusive representative. The petition must also be supported by at least 30 percent of the employees in the unit indicating support for another union or a lack of support for the current exclusive representative.
If PERB requirements are met, PERB will conduct a decertification election. If another union has received a 30 percent showing of support, the choices on the PERB election ballot would be between the existing exclusive representative, the other union, and "No Representation," which means no exclusive representation. If no other union is involved, the choices would be between the existing exclusive representative and "No Representation." A majority of votes cast would determine the outcome of the decertification election.
However, no decertification election will be held and any petition for a decertification election will be dismissed by PERB if the current exclusive representative has been elected within the previous 12 months. PERB will also dismiss a petition for decertification if a collective bargaining agreement between the exclusive representative and the employer has been in effect for less than three years and the petition for decertification has been filed more than 120 days before but not less than 90 days prior to the expiration of the agreement.
Since HEERA became effective in 1979, two University units have had petitions filed for decertification elections. They are the Police Unit and the Clerical and Allied Services Unit. A decertification election was held for the Police Unit and PERB decertified the exclusive representative for the police officers in 1987. In 1996, the FUPOA was certified as the exclusive representative for the police officers. In the recent decertification election, FUPOA prevailed by receiving the majority vote and remains as the exclusive representative for the Police Officer Unit.
A group seeking a decertification election in the Clerical Unit in 1994 did not obtain the 30% showing of support from employees. Accordingly, PERB dismissed their petition and no decertification election took place for that unit. Again in 1997 a group called Coalition of University Employees (CUE) filed a petition to decertify AFSCME as the exclusive representative of the Clerical Unit. CUE's efforts was successful and November 21, 1997, CUE was certified by PERB as the exclusive representative for the Clerical Unit.