Local public employee organizations.

Existing law, the Public Safety Officers Procedural Bill of Rights Act, grants certain employment rights to public safety officers, as defined. Existing law, the Meyers-Milias-Brown Act, contains various provisions that govern collective bargaining of local represented employees, and delegates jurisdiction to the Public Employment Relations Board to resolve disputes and enforce the statutory duties and rights of local public agency employers and employees. Existing law gives public employees the right to refuse to join or participate in the activities of employee organizations, and provides that employees who are members of a bona fide religion, body, or sect that has historically held conscientious objections to joining or financially supporting public employee organizations are not required to join or financially support a public employee organization as a condition of employment, as specified. Existing law authorizes a recognized employee organization to charge an employee covered by the Firefighters Procedural Bill of Rights Act for the reasonable cost of representation when the employee holds a conscientious objection, as described above, or declines membership in the organization and requests individual representation in a discipline, grievance, arbitration, or administrative hearing from the organization. Existing law applies this authorization only to proceedings for which the recognized employee organization does not exclusively control the process. This bill would additionally authorize a recognized employee organization to charge an employee covered by the Public Safety Officers Procedural Bill of Rights Act for the reasonable cost of representation when the employee holds a conscientious objection or declines membership in the organization and requests individual representation in a discipline, grievance, arbitration, or administrative hearing from the organization. The bill would apply this authorization only to proceedings for which the recognized employee organization does not exclusively control the process.