An Act To Amend the Laws Governing the Collective Bargaining Rights of Employees of School Management and Leadership Centers
Maine Legislature, Session 129, LD 1412
Committee: Labor and Housing
Sponsors: HANDY, LAWRENCE, BROOKS, CLOUTIER, CRAVEN, SYLVESTER
Amends: 5 MRSA §17001, 20-A MRSA §3808

Legislative Document
No. 1412
H.P. 1025
House of Representatives, March 26, 2019
An Act To Amend the Laws Governing the Collective Bargaining 
Rights of Employees of School Management and Leadership Centers
Reference to the Committee on Labor and Housing suggested and ordered printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative HANDY of Lewiston.
Cosponsored by Senator LAWRENCE of York and
Representatives: BROOKS of Lewiston, CLOUTIER of Lewiston, CRAVEN of Lewiston, 
SYLVESTER of Portland.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  5 MRSA §17001, sub-§42, as amended by PL 2007, c. 491, §§66 and 67, 
is further amended to read:
42.  Teacher.  "Teacher" means:
A.  Any employee of a public school or a school management and leadership center 
established pursuant to Title 20-A, chapter 123 who fills any position that the 
Department of Education requires be filled by a person who holds the appropriate 
certification or license required for that position and:
(1)  Holds appropriate certification from the Department of Education, including 
an employee whose duties include, in addition to those for which certification is 
required, either the setup, maintenance or upgrading of a school computer system 
the use of which is to assist in the introduction of new learning to students or 
providing school faculty orientation and training related to use of the computer 
system for educational purposes; or
(2)  Holds an appropriate license issued to a professional employee by a licensing 
agency of the State;
B.  Any employee of a public school or a school management and leadership center 
established pursuant to Title 20-A, chapter 123 who fills any position not included in 
paragraph A, the principal function of which is to introduce new learning to students, 
except that a coach who is employed by a public school and who is not otherwise 
covered by the definition of teacher as defined in this subsection or an employee who 
is employed in adult education as defined in Title 20-A, section 8601-A, subsection 1 
and who is not otherwise covered by the definition of teacher defined in this 
subsection may not be considered a teacher for purposes of this Part;
C.  Any employee of a public school on June 30, 1989, in a position not included in 
paragraph A or B which was included in the definition of teacher in effect on June 30, 
1989, as long as:
(1)  The employee does not terminate employment; or
(2)  The employee terminates employment and returns to employment in a 
position in the same classification within 2 years of the date of termination.
Regardless of any subsequent employment history, any employee of a public school 
in a position which was included in the definition of teacher in effect on June 30, 
1989, is entitled to creditable service as a teacher for all service in that position on or 
before that date;
D.  Any employee of a public school or a school management and leadership center 
established pursuant to Title 20-A, chapter 123 in a position not included in 
paragraph A, B or C who was a member of the State Employee and Teacher 
Retirement Program of the retirement system as a teacher on August 1, 1988, as long 
as:
(1)  The employee does not terminate employment; or
(2)  The employee terminates employment and returns to employment in a 
position in the same classification within 2 years of the date of termination;
E.  Any former employee of a public school or a school management and leadership 
center established pursuant to Title 20-A, chapter 123 in a position not included in 
paragraph A, B or C who was a member of the State Employee and Teacher 
Retirement Program of the retirement system as a teacher before August 1, 1988, as 
long as the former employee returns to employment in a position in the same 
classification before July 1, 1991; or
F.  For service before July 1, 1989, any employee of a public school in a position 
which was included in the definition of teacher before July 1, 1989.
"Teacher" includes a person who is on a one-year leave of absence from a position as a 
teacher and is participating in the education of prospective teachers by teaching and 
supervising students enrolled in college-level teacher preparation programs in this State.
"Teacher" also includes a person who is on a leave of absence from a position as a teacher 
and is duly elected as President of the Maine Education Association.
"Teacher" also includes a person who, subsequent to July 1, 1981, has served as president 
of a recognized or certified bargaining agent representing teachers for which released 
time from teaching duties for performance of the functions of president has been 
negotiated in a collective bargaining agreement between the collective bargaining agent 
and the teacher's school administrative unit and for whom contributions related to the 
portion of the person's salary attributable to the released time have been paid as part of 
the regular payroll of the school administrative unit.
Sec. 2.  20-A MRSA §3808 is enacted to read:
§3808.  Collective bargaining in school management and leadership centers
1.  Assumption of obligations, duties, liabilities and rights.  On and after the 
operational date of a school management and leadership center, teachers and other 
employees whose positions are transferred from a school administrative unit to the school 
management and leadership center and were included in a bargaining unit represented by 
a bargaining agent, and for participating school administrative units, teachers and other 
employees who are subsequently employed by the school management and leadership 
center and were included in a bargaining unit and represented by a bargaining agent, 
continue to be included in the same bargaining unit and represented by the same 
bargaining agent pending completion of the bargaining agent and bargaining unit merger 
procedures and bargaining for initial school management and leadership center collective 
bargaining agreements covering school management and leadership center employees, as 
described in this section.  After teachers and other employees become employees of the 
school management and leadership center, the school management and leadership center 
has the obligations, duties, liabilities and rights of a public employer pursuant to Title 26, 
chapter 9-A with respect to those teachers and other employees.
2.  Structure of bargaining units.  All bargaining units of school management and 
leadership center employees must be structured on a school management and leadership 
center-wide basis.  Teachers and other employees who are employed by the school 
management and leadership center to provide consolidated services must be removed 
from the existing bargaining units of teachers and other employees who are employed by 
each member school unit and merged into units of school management and leadership 
center employees.  Merger into school management and leadership center-wide 
bargaining units is not subject to approval or disapproval of employees.  Formation of 
school management and leadership center-wide bargaining units must occur in 
accordance with this subsection.
A.  In each school management and leadership center, there must be one bargaining 
unit of teachers, if any teachers are employed by the school management and 
leadership center, and, to the extent they are on the effective date of this paragraph 
included in bargaining units, other certified professional employees, excluding 
principals and other administrators.
B.  Any additional bargaining units in a school management and leadership center 
must be structured as follows.
(1)  In the initial establishment of such units, units must be structured primarily 
on the basis of the existing pattern of organization, maintaining the grouping of 
employee classifications into bargaining units that existed prior to the creation of 
the school management and leadership center and avoiding conflicts among 
different bargaining agents to the extent possible.
(2)  In the event of a dispute regarding the classifications to be included within a 
school management and leadership center-wide bargaining unit, the current 
bargaining agent or agents or the school management and leadership center may 
petition the Maine Labor Relations Board to determine the appropriate unit in 
accordance with this section and Title 26, section 966.
C.  When there is the same bargaining agent in all bargaining units that will be 
merged into a school management and leadership center-wide bargaining unit, the 
units must be separated and merged on the operational date or the date represented 
employees are transferred to the school management and leadership center, 
whichever is applicable, and the school management and leadership center shall 
recognize the bargaining agent as the representative of the merged unit.
D.  When all bargaining units that will be separated and merged into a school 
management and leadership center-wide bargaining unit are represented by separate 
local affiliates of the same state labor organization, the units must be separated and 
merged on the operational date or the date represented employees are transferred to 
the school management and leadership center, whichever is applicable.  The identity 
of a single affiliate that will be designated the bargaining agent for the merged unit 
must be selected by the existing bargaining agents and the state labor organization.  
Upon completion of the merger and designation of the bargaining agent and 
notification by the state labor organization to the school management and leadership 
center, the school management and leadership center shall recognize the designated 
bargaining agent as the representative of employees in the merged unit.  If necessary, 
the parties shall then execute a written amendment to any collective bargaining 
agreement then in effect to change the name of the bargaining agent to reflect the 
merger.
E.  When there are bargaining units that will be separated and merged into a school 
management and leadership center-wide bargaining unit in which there are 
employees who are not represented by any bargaining agent and other employees 
who are represented either by the same bargaining agent or separate local affiliates of 
the same state labor organization, the units must be separated and merged on the 
operational date or the date represented employees are transferred to the school 
management and leadership center, whichever is applicable, as long as a majority of 
employees who compose the merged unit were represented by the bargaining agent 
prior to the merger.  The procedures for separation and merger of separate local 
affiliates of the same state labor organization described in paragraph D must be 
followed if applicable.  If prior to the merger a bargaining agent did not represent a 
majority of employees who compose the merged unit, a bargaining agent election 
must be conducted by the Maine Labor Relations Board pursuant to paragraph F.
F.  When bargaining units with different bargaining agents must be merged into a 
single school management and leadership center-wide bargaining unit pursuant to this 
section, the bargaining agent of the merged bargaining unit must be selected in 
accordance with Title 26, section 967 except as modified in this section.
(1)  A petition for an election to determine the bargaining agent must be filed 
with the Maine Labor Relations Board by any of the current bargaining agents or 
the school management and leadership center.
(2)  The petition must be filed not more than 90 days prior to the first August 31st 
occurring after either the 3rd anniversary date of the operational date of the 
school management and leadership center or the date on which positions are 
transferred from member school units to the school management and leadership 
center, whichever is later.
(3)  The election ballot may contain only the names of the bargaining agents of 
bargaining units that will be merged into the school management and leadership 
center-wide bargaining unit and the choice of no representative, but no other 
choices.  A showing of interest is not required from any such bargaining agent 
other than its current status as representative.
(4)  The obligation to bargain with existing bargaining agents continues from the 
operational date of the school management and leadership center or the date on 
which positions are transferred from member school units to the school 
management and leadership center, whichever is later, until the determination of 
the bargaining agent of the school management and leadership center-wide 
bargaining unit under this section; but in no event may any collective bargaining 
agreement that is executed after the operational date extend beyond the first 
August 31st occurring after either the 3rd anniversary date of the operational date 
of the school management and leadership center or the date on which positions 
are transferred from member school units to the school management and 
leadership center, whichever is later.
(5)  The Maine Labor Relations Board shall expedite to the extent practicable all 
petitions for determination of the bargaining agent in the school management and 
leadership center filed pursuant to this section.
(6)  The bargaining units must be merged into a school management and 
leadership center-wide bargaining unit as of the date of certification of the results 
of the election by the Maine Labor Relations Board or the expiration of the 
collective bargaining agreements in the unit, whichever occurs later.
(7)  Until the first August 31st occurring after either the 3rd anniversary date of 
the operational date of the school management and leadership center or the date 
on which positions are transferred from member school units to the school 
management and leadership center, whichever is later, existing bargaining agents 
shall continue to represent the bargaining units that they represented on the day 
prior to the operational date of the school management and leadership center.  If 
necessary, each bargaining agent and the school management and leadership 
center must negotiate interim collective bargaining agreements to expire the first 
August 31st occurring after either the 3rd anniversary date of the operational date 
of the school management and leadership center or the date on which positions 
are transferred from member school units to the school management and 
leadership center, whichever is later.
(8)  When there are 2 or more bargaining units in which there are employees who 
are represented either by the same bargaining agent or by separate local affiliates 
of the same state labor organization that will be merged into a school 
management and leadership center-wide bargaining unit with one or more other 
bargaining units pursuant to the election procedures described in this paragraph, 
the bargaining units that are represented either by the same bargaining agent or 
by separate local affiliates of the same state labor organization must merge as of 
the operational date.  The procedures for merger of separate local affiliates of the 
same state labor organization described in paragraph D must be followed if 
applicable.
3.  Agent to engage in collective bargaining.  After the merger of bargaining units 
in a school management and leadership center, the bargaining agent of a school 
management and leadership center-wide bargaining unit and the school management and 
leadership center shall engage in collective bargaining for a collective bargaining 
agreement for the school management and leadership center-wide bargaining unit.  In the 
collective bargaining agreement for each school management and leadership center-wide 
bargaining unit, the employment relations, policies, practices, salary schedules, hours and 
working conditions throughout the school management and leadership center must be 
made uniform and consistent as soon as practicable.  In the event that the parties are 
unable to agree upon an initial school management and leadership center-wide collective 
bargaining agreement, the parties shall use the dispute resolution procedures pursuant to 
Title 26, section 965 to resolve their differences.
4.  Application of collective bargaining agreements.  On and after the operational 
date of a school management and leadership center, but before the completion of 
negotiations for a single school management and leadership center-wide collective 
bargaining agreement for the school management and leadership center-wide bargaining 
unit, the wages, hours and working conditions of an employee of the school management 
and leadership center who is in a bargaining unit and who is reassigned to a different 
position that is in a different bargaining unit but that upon the completion of the merger 
of bargaining units will be included in the same school management and leadership 
center-wide bargaining unit must be determined by the terms of the collective bargaining 
agreement that applies to the position to which the employee is reassigned, except as 
provided in this subsection.
A.  If the application of the collective bargaining agreement that applies to the 
position to which the employee is reassigned would cause a reduction in the 
employee's wage or salary rate, the employee's wage or salary rate must be 
maintained at the rate the employee was paid immediately prior to the reassignment 
until the completion of negotiations for a single school management and leadership 
center-wide collective bargaining agreement for the school management and 
leadership center-wide bargaining unit or the applicable collective bargaining 
agreement requires a higher wage or salary rate for the employee, whichever occurs 
sooner.
B.  If the application of the existing collective bargaining agreement that applies to 
the position to which the employee is reassigned would cause a reduction in the 
amount that is paid by the school management and leadership center for premiums for 
health insurance for the employee and the employee's dependents, the school 
management and leadership center's payment must be maintained at the amount that 
was paid immediately prior to the reassignment until the completion of negotiations 
for a single school management and leadership center-wide collective bargaining 
agreement for the school management and leadership center-wide bargaining unit or 
the applicable collective bargaining agreement requires a higher payment, whichever 
occurs sooner.
C.  If the application of the existing collective bargaining agreement that applies to 
the position to which the employee is reassigned provides for coverage under a 
different health insurance plan, the employee may elect to retain coverage under the 
health insurance plan in which the employee was enrolled immediately prior to 
reassignment if the eligibility provisions of the plan permit until the completion of 
negotiations for a single school management and leadership center-wide collective 
bargaining agreement for the school management and leadership center-wide 
bargaining unit.
SUMMARY
This bill provides that employees of school management and leadership centers 
established under the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 20-A, chapter 123 are eligible to 
participate in the Maine Public Employees Retirement System.  It also establishes 
collective bargaining obligations, duties, liabilities and rights for a school management 
and leadership center pursuant to the laws governing municipal public employers and 
includes provisions for the merging of bargaining units of employees of a school 
administrative unit that also are employed by a school management and leadership center.