This section grants employees the right to organize themselves into labor unions, join or aid these unions, and negotiate as a group through chosen representatives. In addition, it stresses that the district must remain neutral, showing no favoritism towards any specific union.

This law outlines how employees of a district can be represented by a labor organization for collective bargaining. If most employees in a unit want representation, and it's confirmed the labor organization represents them, the district must enter a formal agreement about their pay, hours, and working conditions.

If a disagreement arises and can't be settled through negotiations, it can be decided by an arbitration board. This board consists of representatives from both the district and the labor organization and a final arbitrator chosen from a list provided by a mediation service if the board can't agree on one.

The decision made by the majority of this board is final. Both parties share the costs of arbitration equally, but each pays their own other expenses.

If the board and the employees' representatives can't agree on arbitration during a dispute, either side can notify the State Conciliation Service. This service will check if the dispute can be resolved by them and identify the issues at hand. Whatever they find gets reported to the Governor, who must appoint a three-person commission to investigate within 10 days. This commission has 30 days to report back to the Governor.

Until 30 days after the commission's report, neither side can change any conditions that caused the dispute, unless both sides agree. During this period, they must continue providing services to the public.

This section of the law prevents contracts or agreements with labor groups that discriminate against employees based on certain protected characteristics defined in the Government Code. These characteristics can include things like race, gender, or other personal attributes. However, labor organizations can exclude anyone who supports overthrowing the government violently.

Additionally, districts must not discriminate in employment decisions based on the same protected traits, again with exceptions as stated in the Government Code.

This law addresses how disputes regarding labor union representation and the appropriateness of employee units are resolved in California. If there's uncertainty about whether a labor organization truly represents a majority of workers or if the group is suitable for bargaining, the State Conciliation Service steps in. They must hold a public hearing to decide on the right group for collective bargaining, following federal labor laws as a guide.

After that, the Service organizes an election to confirm representation and certifies the outcome. Once certified, this decision cannot be contested for a year, or until a bargaining agreement ends, depending on which comes later. However, such agreements won't block representation proceedings for over two years.

If a district takes over existing facilities from a public utility, whether by buying or taking it, they must honor existing labor contracts. Employees working directly with the acquired facilities should be given similar jobs in the district without needing to pass any tests, keeping all their benefits like sick leave, seniority, and pensions as they had before. Employees will also keep their rights to retirement or other benefit systems. Their wages, seniority, pensions, vacations, or other benefits should not be reduced because of the takeover. The district can choose to offer these benefits to higher-level employees not covered under the basic employee protections.

This law says that a district can’t make changes to transit systems, like buying, selling, leasing, or merging them, without first ensuring the affected employees are taken care of. This care, including terms and conditions, must be discussed and agreed upon through collective bargaining, which is a process where representatives negotiate employment conditions.

This section allows employees of a district to have specific amounts deducted from their wages, provided they've given approval. These deductions can be: for union dues based on a collective bargaining agreement, contributions to health, welfare, or retirement plans, and for any other deductions that a private employer might permit.

This law mandates that a district must engage in good faith negotiations with a recognized labor organization. They need to sign a formal agreement covering employee wages, hours, and work conditions. The law requires the district to follow these agreements fully and make sure their duty to negotiate includes any topic usually discussed in private sector bargaining, even those that are retroactive.