(a) If, after a reasonable period of time, representatives of the district and the accredited representatives of the employees fail to reach agreement either on the terms of a written contract governing wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment or the interpretation or application of the terms of an existing contract, upon the agreement of both the district and the representatives of the employees, the dispute may be submitted to an arbitration board.
(b) The arbitration board shall be composed of two representatives of the district and two representatives of the labor organization, and they shall endeavor to agree upon the selection of a fifth member. If they are unable to agree, the names of five persons experienced in labor arbitration shall be obtained from the State Conciliation Service. The labor organization and the district shall, alternately, strike a name from this list, and the name remaining after the labor organization and the district have stricken four names shall be designated as the fifth arbitrator and chairperson of the board of arbitration. The labor organization and the district shall determine by lot who shall first strike a name from the list. The decision of a majority of the arbitration board shall be final and binding upon the parties thereto.
(c) Each party shall be responsible for the expense of the presentation of its case. All other expenses of arbitration shall be borne equally by the parties and the expenses may include the making of a verbatim record of the proceedings and transcript of that record.
(Added by Stats. 2002, Ch. 341, Sec. 4. Effective January 1, 2003.)