(a) As used in this article, “board” means the Public Employment Relations Board established pursuant to Section 3541.

(b) The powers and duties of the board described in Section 3541.3 shall also apply, as appropriate, to this article and shall include the authority as set forth in subdivisions (c) and (d). Included among the appropriate powers of the board are the power to order elections, to conduct any election the board orders, and to adopt rules to apply in areas where a trial court has no rule.

(c) A complaint alleging any violation of this article or of any rules and regulations adopted by a trial court pursuant to Section 71636 shall be processed as an unfair practice charge by the board. The initial determination as to whether the charge of unfair practice is justified and, if so, the appropriate remedy necessary to effectuate the purposes of this article, shall be a matter within the exclusive jurisdiction of the board, except that in an action to recover damages due to an unlawful strike, the board shall have no authority to award strike-preparation expenses as damages, and shall have no authority to award damages for costs, expenses, or revenue losses incurred during, or as a consequence of, an unlawful strike. The board shall apply and interpret unfair labor practices consistent with existing judicial interpretations of this article and Section 71639.3. The board shall not issue a complaint in respect of any charge based upon an alleged unfair practice occurring more than six months prior to the filing of the charge, except that if the rules and regulations adopted by a trial court require exhaustion of a remedy prior to filing an unfair practice charge or the charging party chooses to exhaust a trial court’s remedy prior to filing an unfair practice charge, the six-month limitation set forth in this subdivision shall be tolled during such reasonable amount of time it takes the charging party to exhaust the remedy, but nothing herein shall require a charging party to exhaust a remedy when that remedy would be futile.

(d) The board shall enforce and apply rules adopted by a trial court concerning unit determinations, representation, recognition, and elections.

(e) This section does not apply to employees designated as management employees under Section 71637.1.

(f) The board shall not find it an unfair practice for an employee organization to violate a rule or regulation adopted by a trial court if that rule or regulation is itself in violation of this article.

(Amended by Stats. 2011, Ch. 539, Sec. 5. (SB 857) Effective January 1, 2012.)