A. The election officer shall be chosen within three (3) business days of notification by the labor organization to the Tribe of its intention to present authorization cards, and the same election officer shall preside thereafter for all proceedings under the request for recognition; provided, however, that if the election officer resigns, dies, or is incapacitated for any other reason from performing the functions of this office, a substitute election officer shall be selected in accordance with the dispute resolution provisions herein. Dated and signed authorized cards from thirty percent (30%) or more of the eligible employees within the bargaining unit verified by the elections officer will result in a secret ballot election. The election officer shall make a determination as to whether the required thirty percent (30%) showing has been made within one (1) working day after the submission of authorization cards. If the election officer determines the required thirty percent (30%) showing of interest has been made, the election officer shall issue a notice of election. The election shall be concluded within thirty (30) calendar days of the issuance of the notice of election.

B. Upon the showing of interest to the election officer pursuant to subsection (A) of this section, within two (2) working days the Tribe shall provide to the union an election eligibility list containing the full first and last names of the eligible employees within the sought-after bargaining unit and the eligible employees’ last known addresses and telephone numbers and email addresses. Nothing herein shall preclude the Tribe from voluntarily providing an election eligibility list at an earlier point of a union organizing campaign with or without an election. The election shall be conducted by the election officer by secret ballot pursuant to procedures set forth in a consent election agreement in substantially the same form as Attachment 1. In the event either that a party refuses to enter into the consent election agreement or that the parties do not agree on the terms, the election officer shall issue an order that conforms to the terms of the form consent election agreement and shall have authority to decide any terms upon which the parties have not agreed, after giving the parties the opportunity to present their views in writing or in a telephonic conference call. The election officer shall be a member of the Tribal Labor Panel chosen in the same manner as a single arbitrator pursuant to the dispute resolution provisions in Section 3-213(B)(2). All questions concerning representation of the Tribe and/or eligible employees by a labor organization shall be resolved by the election officer.

C. The election officer shall certify the labor organization as the exclusive collective bargaining representative of a unit of employees if the labor organization has received the support of a majority of the eligible employees in a secret ballot election that the election officer determines to have been conducted fairly. The numerical threshold for certification is fifty percent (50%) of the eligible employees plus one (1). If the election officer determines that the election was conducted unfairly due to misconduct by the Tribe and/or employer or union, the election officer may order a rerun election. If the election officer determines that there was the commission of serious unfair labor practices by the Tribe, or in the event the union made the offer provided for in Section 3-207(B) that the Tribe violated its obligations under Section 3-207(C), that interferes with the election process and precludes the holding of a fair election, and the labor organization is able to demonstrate that it had the support of a majority of the employees in the unit at any time before or during the course of the Tribe’s misconduct, the election officer shall certify the labor organization as the exclusive bargaining representative.

D. The Tribe or the union may appeal within five (5) days any decision rendered after the date of the election by the election officer to a three (3) member panel of the Tribal Labor Panel mutually chosen by both parties; provided, that the Tribal Labor Panel must issue a decision within thirty (30) days after receiving the appeal.

E. A union which loses an election and has exhausted all dispute remedies related to the election may not invoke any provisions of this chapter at that particular casino or related facility until one (1) year after the election was lost. (Res. 2019-23)