A. A labor organization that has been certified by the board or local board as representing the public employees in the appropriate bargaining unit shall be the exclusive representative of all public employees in the appropriate bargaining unit. The exclusive representative shall act for all public employees in the appropriate bargaining unit and negotiate a collective bargaining agreement covering all public employees in the appropriate bargaining unit. The exclusive representative shall represent the interests of all public employees in the appropriate bargaining unit without discrimination or regard to membership in the labor organization. A claim by a public employee that the exclusive representative has violated this duty of fair representation shall be forever barred if not brought within six months of the date on which the public employee knew, or reasonably should have known, of the violation.
B. This section does not prevent a public employee, acting individually, from presenting a grievance without the intervention of the exclusive representative. At a hearing on a grievance brought by a public employee individually, the exclusive representative shall be afforded the opportunity to be present and make its views known. An adjustment made shall not be inconsistent with or in violation of the collective bargaining agreement then in effect between the public employer and the exclusive representative.
C. A public employer shall provide an exclusive representative of an appropriate bargaining unit reasonable access to employees within the bargaining unit, including the following:
(1) for purposes of newly hired employees in the bargaining unit, reasonable access includes:
(a) the right to meet with new employees, without loss of employee compensation or leave benefits; and
(b) the right to meet with new employees within thirty days from the date of hire for a period of at least thirty minutes but not more than one hundred twenty minutes, during new employee orientation or, if the public employer does not conduct new employee orientations, at individual or group meetings; and
(2) for purposes of employees in the bargaining unit who are not new employees, reasonable access includes:
(a) the right to meet with employees during the employees' regular work hours at the employees' regular work location to investigate and discuss grievances, workplace-related complaints and other matters relating to employment relations; and
(b) the right to conduct meetings at the employees' regular work location before or after the employees' regular work hours, during meal periods and during any other break periods.
D. A public employer shall permit an exclusive representative to use the public employer's facilities or property, whether owned or leased by the employer, for purposes of conducting meetings with the represented employees in the bargaining unit. An exclusive representative may hold the meetings described in this section at a time and place set by the exclusive representative. The exclusive representative shall have the right to conduct the meetings without undue interference and may establish reasonable rules regarding appropriate conduct for meeting attendees.
E. The meetings described in this section shall not interfere with the public employer's operations.
F. If a public employer has the information in the employer's records, the public employer shall provide to the exclusive representative, in an editable digital file format agreed to by the exclusive representative, the following information for each employee in an appropriate bargaining unit:
(1) the employee's name and date of hire;
(2) contact information, including:
(a) cellular, home and work telephone numbers;
(b) a means of electronic communication, including work and personal electronic mail addresses; and
(c) home address or personal mailing address; and
(3) employment information, including the employee's job title, salary and work site location.
G. The public employer shall provide the information described in Subsection F of this section to the exclusive representative within ten days from the date of hire for newly hired employees in an appropriate bargaining unit, and every one hundred twenty days for employees in the bargaining unit who are not newly hired employees. The information shall be kept confidential by the labor organization and its employees or officers. Apart from the disclosure required by this subsection, and notwithstanding any provision contained in the Inspection of Public Records Act [Chapter 14, Article 3 NMSA 1978], the public employer shall not disclose the information described in Subsection F of this section, or public employees' dates of birth or social security numbers to a third party.
H. An exclusive representative shall have the right to use the electronic mail systems or other similar communication systems of a public employer to communicate with the employees in the bargaining unit regarding:
(1) collective bargaining, including the administration of collective bargaining agreements;
(2) the investigation of grievances or other disputes relating to employment relations; and
(3) matters involving the governance or business of the labor organization.
I. Nothing in this section prevents a public employer from providing an exclusive representative access to employees within the bargaining unit beyond the reasonable access required under this section, or limits any existing right of a labor organization to communicate with public employees.
History: Laws 2003, ch. 4, § 15; 2003, ch. 5, § 15; 2020, ch. 48, § 8.
ANNOTATIONSThe 2020 amendment, effective July 1, 2020, required public employers to grant an exclusive union representative reasonable access to and information concerning bargaining unit employees, as well as use of public employees' facilities or property; in Subsection A, added "A claim by a public employee that the exclusive representative has violated this duty of fair representation shall be forever barred if not brought within six months of the date on which the public employee knew, or reasonably should have known, of the violation."; and added Subsections C through I.