N.Y. CVS Law § 205 — New York Code / Act CVS / Article 14 / Section 205
Public employment relations board
Status: in_force

§ 205. Public employment relations board.  1. There is hereby created\nin the department a board, to be known as the public employment\nrelations board, which shall consist of three members appointed by the\ngovernor, by and with the advice and consent of the senate from persons\nrepresentative of the public. Not more than two members of the board\nshall be members of the same political party. Each member shall be\nappointed for a term of six years, except that of the members first\nappointed, one shall be appointed for a term to expire on May\nthirty-first, nineteen hundred sixty-nine, one for a term to expire on\nMay thirty-first, nineteen hundred seventy-one, and one for a term to\nexpire on May thirty-first, nineteen hundred seventy-three. The governor\nshall designate one member who shall serve as chairperson of the board\nuntil the expiration of his or her term. A member appointed to fill a\nvacancy shall be appointed for the unexpired term of the member whom he\nor she is to succeed.\n  2. Members of the board shall hold no other public office or public\nemployment in the state. The chairperson shall give his or her whole\ntime to his or her duties.\n  3. Members of the board other than the chairperson shall, when\nperforming the work of the board, be compensated at the rate of two\nhundred fifty dollars per day, together with an allowance for actual and\nnecessary expenses incurred in the discharge of their duties hereunder.\nThe chairperson shall receive an annual salary to be fixed within the\namount available therefor by appropriation, in addition to an allowance\nfor expenses actually and necessarily incurred by him or her in the\nperformance of his or her duties.\n  4. (a) The chairperson of the board may appoint an executive director\nand such other persons, including but not limited to attorneys,\nmediators, members of fact-finding boards and representatives of\nemployee organizations and public employers to serve as technical\nadvisers to such fact-finding boards, as it may from time to time deem\nnecessary for the performance of its functions, prescribe their duties,\nfix their compensation and provide for reimbursement of their expenses\nwithin the amounts made available therefor by appropriation. Attorneys\nappointed under this section may, at the direction of the chairperson of\nthe board, appear for and represent the board in any case in court.\n  (b) No member of the board or its appointees pursuant to this\nsubdivision, including without limitation any mediator or fact-finder\nemployed or retained by the board, shall, except as required by this\narticle, be compelled to nor shall he or she voluntarily disclose to any\nadministrative or judicial tribunal or at the legislative hearing, held\npursuant to subparagraph (iii) of paragraph (e) of subdivision three of\nsection two hundred nine of this article, any information relating to\nthe resolution of a particular dispute in the course of collective\nnegotiations acquired in the course of his or her official activities\nunder this article, nor shall any reports, minutes, written\ncommunications, or other documents pertaining to such information and\nacquired in the course of his or her official activities under this\narticle be subject to subpoena or voluntarily disclosed; except that\nwhere the information so required indicates that the person appearing or\nwho has appeared before the board has been the victim of, or otherwise\ninvolved in, a crime, other than a criminal contempt in a case involving\nor growing out of a violation of this article, said members of the board\nand its appointees may be required to testify fully in relation thereto\nupon any examination, trial, or other proceeding in which the commission\nof such crime is the subject of inquiry.\n  5. In addition to the powers and functions provided in other sections\nof this article, the board shall have the following powers and\nfunctions:\n  (a) To establish procedures consistent with the provisions of section\ntwo hundred seven of this article and after consultation with interested\nparties, to resolve disputes concerning the representation status of\nemployee organizations.\n  (b) To resolve, pursuant to such procedures, disputes concerning the\nrepresentation status of employee organizations of employees of the\nstate and state public authorities upon request of any employee\norganization, state department or agency or state public authority\ninvolved.\n  (c) To resolve, pursuant to such procedures but only in the absence of\napplicable procedures established pursuant to section two hundred six of\nthis article, disputes concerning the representation status of other\nemployee organizations, upon request of any employee organization or\nother government or public employer involved.\n  (d) To establish procedures for the prevention of improper employer\nand employee organization practices as provided in section two hundred\nnine-a of this article, and to issue a decision and order directing an\noffending party to cease and desist from any improper practice, and to\ntake such affirmative action as will effectuate the policies of this\narticle (but not to assess exemplary damages), including but not limited\nto the reinstatement of employees with or without back pay; provided,\nhowever, that except as appropriate to effectuate the policies of\nsubdivision three of section two hundred nine-a of this article, the\nboard shall not have authority to enforce an agreement between an\nemployer and an employee organization and shall not exercise\njurisdiction over an alleged violation of such an agreement that would\nnot otherwise constitute an improper employer or employee organization\npractice; provided further that, without limiting in any way the board's\ngeneral power to take affirmative action, including the provision to\nmake whole relief, the board's power to address employer violations of\ncease and desist orders issued pursuant to this section in connection\nwith charges of unfair labor practices under paragraph (d) of\nsubdivision one of section two hundred nine-a of this article shall\ninclude, to the extent the board deems appropriate, the authority to\nmake employees whole for the loss of pay and/or benefits resulting from\nthe violation of the cease and desist order and the underlying unfair\nlabor practice by providing that any agreement between the parties be\ngiven retroactive effect to the date on which the unfair labor practice\nwas found to have commenced and by providing for appropriate interest\nfrom that date, calculated using the short-term federal rate for the\nunderpayment of taxes as set out in 26 U.S.C. 6621.14, except that the\nmake whole relief provided for under this paragraph shall not be ordered\nwhen and to the extent that the employee organization is also found to\nhave refused to bargain in good faith. When the board has determined\nthat a duly recognized or certified employee organization representing\npublic employees has breached its duty of fair representation in the\nprocessing or failure to process a claim alleging that a public employer\nhas breached its agreement with such employee organization, the board\nmay direct the employee organization and the public employer to process\nthe contract claim in accordance with the parties' grievance procedure.\nThe board may, in its discretion, retain jurisdiction to apportion\nbetween such employee organization and public employer any damages\nassessed as a result of such grievance procedure. The pendency of\nproceedings under this paragraph shall not be used as the basis to delay\nor interfere with determination of representation status pursuant to\nsection two hundred seven of this article or with collective\nnegotiations. The board shall exercise exclusive nondelegable\njurisdiction of the powers granted to it by this paragraph, in which\nconnection, no finding of fact or law contained in a report and\nrecommendation of a hearing officer appointed pursuant to subdivision\ntwo of section seventy-five of this chapter shall preclude the\nresolution of any issue of fact or law in a subsequent proceeding held\nunder procedures established by the board under this paragraph;\nprovided, however, that this sentence shall not apply to the city of New\nYork. The board of collective bargaining established by section eleven\nhundred seventy-one of the New York city charter shall establish\nprocedures for the prevention of improper employer and employee\norganization practices as provided in section 12-306 of the\nadministrative code of the city of New York, provided, however, that a\nparty aggrieved by a final order issued by the board of collective\nbargaining in an improper practice proceeding may, within ten days after\nservice of the final order, petition the board for review thereof.\nWithin twenty days thereafter, the board, in its discretion, may assert\njurisdiction to review such final order. The failure or refusal of the\nboard to assert jurisdiction shall not be subject to judicial review.\nUpon the refusal of the board to assert jurisdiction, an aggrieved party\nshall have the right to seek review of the final order of the board of\ncollective bargaining. Such proceeding to review shall be brought within\nthirty days of the board's refusal and shall otherwise conform to the\nrequirements of article seventy-eight of the civil practice law and\nrules. If the board shall choose to review, it may affirm, or reverse in\nwhole or in part, or modify the final order, or remand the matter for\nfurther proceedings, or make such other order as it may deem\nappropriate, provided, however, that findings by the board of collective\nbargaining regarding evidentiary matters and issues of credibility\nregarding testimony of witnesses shall be final and not subject to board\nreview.\n  (e) To make studies and analyses of, and act as a clearing house of\ninformation relating to, conditions of employment of public employees\nthroughout the state.\n  (f) To request from any government, and such governments are\nauthorized to provide, such assistance, services and data as will enable\nthe board properly to carry out its functions and powers.\n  (g) To conduct studies of problems involved in representation and\nnegotiation, including, but not limited to (i) the problems of unit\ndetermination, (ii) those subjects which are open to negotiation in\nwhole or in part, (iii) those subjects which require administrative or\nlegislative approval of modifications agreed upon by the parties, and\n(iv) those subjects which are for determination solely by the\nappropriate legislative body, and make recommendations from time to time\nfor legislation based upon the results of such studies.\n  (h) To make available to employee organizations, governments,\nmediators, fact-finding boards and joint study committees established by\ngovernments and employee organizations statistical data relating to\nwages, benefits and employment practices in public and private\nemployment applicable to various localities and occupations to assist\nthem to resolve complex issues in negotiations.\n  (i) to establish, after consulting representatives of employee\norganizations and administrators of public services, panels of qualified\npersons broadly representative of the public to be available to serve as\nmediators, arbitrators or members of fact-finding boards.\n  (j) To hold such hearings and make such inquiries as it deems\nnecessary for it properly to carry out its functions and powers. At any\nconference, hearing, investigation, inquiry or other proceeding before\nthe board or any agent thereof, a party shall have the right to appear\nin person, by counsel or by other authorized representative. Nothing\ncontained herein shall restrict the right of the board to exclude,\nsuspend or disbar any representative for misconduct in accordance with\nthe board's rules.\n  (k) For the purpose of such hearings and inquiries, to administer\noaths and affirmations, examine witnesses and documents, take testimony\nand receive evidence, compel the attendance of witnesses and the\nproduction of documents by the issuance of subpoenas, and delegate such\npowers to any member of the board or any person appointed by the board\nfor the performance of its functions. Such subpoenas shall be regulated\nand enforced under the civil practice law and rules.\n  (l) To make, amend and rescind, from time to time, such rules and\nregulations, including but not limited to those governing its internal\norganization and conduct of its affairs, and to exercise such other\npowers, as may be appropriate to effectuate the purposes and provisions\nof this article.\n  (m) To administer the provisions of article twenty of the labor law to\nthe extent provided for in such article, and to serve all the functions\nof the board as defined in section seven hundred one of the labor law,\nincluding to make, amend and rescind such rules and regulations as may\nbe necessary to carry out the provisions of such article.\n  6. Notwithstanding any other provisions of law, neither the president\nof the civil service commission nor the civil service commission or any\nother officer, employer, board or agency of the department of civil\nservice shall supervise, direct or control the board in the performance\nof any of its functions or the exercise of any of its powers under this\narticle; provided, however, that nothing herein shall be construed to\nexempt employees of the board from the provisions of the civil service\nlaw.\n