[ Text of section effective until November 12, 2007. For text effective November 12, 2007, see below.]
Section 9O. (a) There shall be in the department of labor and workforce development, but in no respect subject to the jurisdiction thereof, a commission to be known as the Labor Relations Commission, in this and the three following sections referred to as the commission, which shall be composed of three members who shall be appointed by the governor, by and with the advice and consent of the executive council. Upon the expiration of the term of any member, his successor shall be appointed in like manner for a term of five years. Any vacancy in the commission shall be filled by appointment in like manner. The governor shall designate one member to serve as chairman of the commission. Any member of the commission may be removed by the governor, upon notice and hearing, for neglect of duty or malfeasance in office, but for no other cause.
(b) A vacancy in the commission shall not impair the right of the remaining members to exercise all the powers of the commission, and two members of the commission shall at all times constitute a quorum. The commission shall have an official seal which shall be judicially noticed.
(c) The commission shall at the close of each fiscal year make a report in writing to the general court stating in detail the cases it has heard, the decisions it has rendered, the names, salaries and duties of all employees and officers in the employ or under the supervision of the commission, and an account of all moneys it has disbursed.
Chapter 23: Section 9O. Division of labor relations; creation; jurisdiction of department; declaration of public policy
[ Text of section as recodified by 2007, 145, Sec. 5 effective November 12, 2007. See 2007, 145, Sec. 9. For text effective until November 12, 2007, see above.]
Section 9O. There shall be within the department of labor a division of labor relations, in this and the following 6 sections called the "division,'' which shall be administered by a director, who shall be appointed by the governor. The division shall include: (1) a dispute resolution office; (2) an advisory council; (3) the commonwealth employment relations board; and (4) the joint labor-management committee. The division and its staff shall be subject to the jurisdiction of the department of labor for all administrative functions, but shall not be subject to the department of labor in the performance of adjudicatory functions, including but not limited to the assignment, evaluation, hiring, and firing of individual adjudicatory personnel.
It is hereby declared to be the public policy of the commonwealth that the best interests of the people of the state are served by the prevention or prompt settlement of labor disputes; and it shall be the responsibility and objective of the division to take such steps as will most effectively and expeditiously encourage the parties to a labor dispute to agree on the terms of a settlement or to agree on the method and procedure which shall be used to resolve a dispute.
It is recognized that a constructive and harmonious long-term collective bargaining relationship is the most positive way to avoid labor disputes, and such a relationship can be effectively developed in the public sector through the use of joint labor management committees.