REPRESENTATION ISSUES; DECERTIFICATION – Bar To

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EERA requires PERB to dismiss a representation petition when “[t]he public school employer has, within the previous 12 months, lawfully recognized an employee organization other than the petitioner as the exclusive representative of any employees included in the unit described in the petition.” (EERA, § 3544.7, subd. (b)(2).) This 12-month period is commonly known as the “certification bar” or the “recognition bar.” Its purpose is to give the new exclusive representative “breathing room” to bargain a first contract. (Gompers Preparatory Academy (2020) PERB Order No. Ad-481, p. 7, fn. 5 (Gompers).) PERB commonly extends the bar as a remedy for unlawful conduct impacting the union’s strength and/or ability to bargain a contract. (See, e.g., Alliance Judy Ivey Burton Technology Academy High School et al. (2022) PERB Decision No. 2809, p. 30.) (p. 4, fn. 6.)