§ 103.21 Processing of petitions filed after voluntary recognition.
(a) An employer's voluntary recognition of a labor organization as exclusive bargaining representative of an appropriate unit of the employer's employees under section 9(a) of the Act, and the first collective-bargaining agreement executed by the parties on or after the date of such voluntary recognition, will not bar the processing of an election petition unless:
(1) The employer and/or the labor organization notifies the Regional Office that recognition has been granted;
(2) The employer posts, in conspicuous places, including all places where notices to employees are customarily posted, a notice of recognition (provided by the Regional Office) informing employees that recognition has been granted and that they have a right to file a petition during a 45-day “window period” beginning on the date the notice is posted;
(3) The employer distributes the notice described in paragraph (a)(2) of this section electronically to employees in the petitioned-for unit, if the employer customarily communicates with its employees electronically; and
(4) 45 days from the posting date pass without a properly supported petition being filed.
(5) The notice described in paragraph (a)(2) of this section shall state as follows:
Federal law gives employees the right to form, join, or assist a union and to choose not to engage in these protected activities.
An employer may lawfully recognize a union based on evidence (such as signed authorization cards) indicating that a majority of employees in an appropriate bargaining unit desire its representation, without an election supervised by the National Labor Relations Board.
Once an employer recognizes a union as the employees' exclusive bargaining representative, the employer has an obligation to bargain with the union in good faith in an attempt to reach a collective-bargaining agreement, and that obligation is not delayed or otherwise impacted by this notice.
The National Labor Relations Board is an agency of the United States Government and does not endorse any choice about whether employees should keep the recognized union, file a petition to certify the recognized union, file a petition to decertify the recognized union, or support or oppose a representation petition filed by another union.
[Employer] on [date] recognized [Union] as the employees' exclusive bargaining representative based on evidence indicating that a majority of employees in [described bargaining unit] desire its representation.
All employees, including those who previously signed cards in support of [Union], have the right to be represented by a union of their choice or by no union at all.
Within 45 days from the date of this notice, a petition supported by 30 percent or more of the unit employees may be filed with the National Labor Relations Board for a secret-ballot election to determine whether or not the unit employees wish to be represented by [Union], or 30 percent or more of the unit employees can support another union's filing of a petition to represent them.
Any properly supported petition filed within the 45-day window period will be processed according to the National Labor Relations Board's normal procedures.
A petition may be filed within the 45-day window period even if [Employer] and [Union] have already reached a collective-bargaining agreement.
If no petition is filed within the 45-day window period, the Union's status as the unit employees' exclusive bargaining representative will be insulated from challenge for a reasonable period of time, and if [Employer] and [Union] reach a collective-bargaining agreement during that insulated reasonable period, an election cannot be held for the duration of that collective-bargaining agreement, up to 3 years.
(b) This section shall be applicable to an employer's voluntary recognition on or after the effective date of this rule.
[85 FR 18399, Apr. 1, 2020]
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