The State Board of Mediation determines the appropriateness of bargaining units of employees based on whether these employees share interests. The Board determines the exclusive bargaining representative of the employees in a particular unit by conducting a secret ballot election.
- Directed Election or Stipulated Election: If the Board’s decision orders an election to be held, that election will normally be held within 45 days from the date of the decision, constituting a Directed Election. A conference call will be scheduled within a week after the decision has been issued to set up the time and date of the election.
If during the initial conference call, the parties have reached an agreement on the bargaining unit without having to go to a hearing, they will stipulate to the election. The procedures are similar on all cases.
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Conference call: Parties will meet with the State Board of Mediation by telephone to discuss the details of the upcoming election. The voter list is due 10 days from the date the decision was issued. If during this call parties decide the best route to take for conducting the election is to hold an electronic ballot election the process is a bit different from a typical election. The parties will discuss the process of conducting the electronic ballot election, which can be cast either electronically or by telephone, including the best time to mail the ballots and when they will be due back to the State Board of Mediation. The following is the Electronic Ballot Process suggested by the Board. The parties may agree to modify this process, subject to the approval of the Chairman or other Authorized Representative of the Board.
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Voter List and Mailing Addresses: Once the Board has received the voter list and mailing addresses from the employer, the voter list will be supplied to the other party(s). This list will be used as the election count.
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Notice of Election: For an electronic ballot election, the Notice of Election will indicate the date the ballots will be sent to the unit employees, the period of time when the employees can call in to the State Board of Mediation to request a ballot if they did not receive theirs, the date the election will close and the date the ballots will be counted.
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Ballots Sent: All voters will receive an email with a unique 16-digit number. They will be able to enter that number in the attached link to the election, or after calling the toll-free number supplied in the email
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Call-ins for Ballots not received by voters: The voters will be allowed to call in for a duplicate ballot link if they did not received theirs on the election start date.
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As Ballots are Received: All ballots returned will be date stamped as they are received.
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Tally of Ballots: The Authorized Officer is responsible for completing the Tally of Ballots form once the count is complete. Each of the party's representatives will receive a copy. If there is no one there for a party, it will be mailed to that party.
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Objections to Conduct of Election: Within ten (10) business days after the tally of ballots has been furnished to the parties, any party may file with the board objections to the conduct of the election or conduct affecting the results of the election. If objections are filed the Chairman shall investigate them, if necessary, the Chairman will set a hearing to make a decision on the objections.
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Certification of Election Results: If no objections have been filed, the Chairman of the State Board of Mediation will certify the election results following the ten (10) day objection period.
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Ten Day Letter: This letter is provided to each parties’ representative advising them that they have ten (10) business days after the tally of ballots has been furnished to the parties to file with the board any objections they may have to the conduct of the election or conduct affecting the results of the election.