Section ERC 12.02 - Complaint(1) WHO MAY FILE; FORM; NUMBER OF COPIES; FILING FEE. A complaint that any municipal employer, municipal employee, or person has engaged in a prohibited practice defined, respectively, in s. 111.70(3) (a), (b) or (c), Stats., may be filed by any party or by a representative authorized to file on behalf of a party. The complaint shall be in writing on a form provided by the commission, or a facsimile of the commission's form, and shall include the signature or a facsimile of the signature of the party or representative filing the complaint. At the time of filing, the filing fee established by s. ERC 10.08(1) shall be submitted to the commission. A complaint is not filed unless it contains the required signature or signature facsimile and unless and until the complaint and fee have been actually received by the commission at its Madison office during normal business hours specified in s. ERC 10.06(1). The complaint shall be transmitted to the commission as set forth in s. ERC 10.06(1). If the complaint is filed in paper form, a total of 3 copies of the complaint shall be included, together with 1 additional copy for each named respondent. The fee may be transmitted to the commission by physical delivery or mail. As used in this chapter, "party" has the same meaning as "party in interest."(2) CONTENTS. The complaint shall contain all of the following: (a) The name, address, phone number, and affiliation, if any, of each complainant, and of any representative of a complainant. Fax numbers and e-mail addresses shall be included, if available.(b) The name, address and phone number of each respondent, and any other party named in the complaint. Fax numbers and e-mail addresses shall be included, if available.(c) A clear and concise statement of the facts constituting the alleged prohibited practice or practices, including the time and place of occurrence of particular acts and the provisions of s. 111.70(3), Stats., alleged to have been violated.(d) A statement of the remedy or remedies the complainant is requesting the commission to order.(3) SERVICE. After the filing of a complaint, the commission shall serve a copy of the complaint on each respondent named in the complaint. At the same time, the commission shall serve all parties named in the complaint with a notice that the scheduling of a hearing shall be held in abeyance pending the results of conciliation unless a party specifically requests otherwise. Service shall be by mail to the parties at their last known post-office address, except that service of a party located outside the state and who has no known post-office address within Wisconsin shall be in the manner provided in s. 111.07(2) (a), Stats.(4) AMENDMENT AND WITHDRAWAL. (a)Amendment. Any complainant may request permission to amend its complaint at any time prior to the issuance of a final order by the commission or examiner. A motion to amend a complaint shall be granted by the commission or examiner unless the amendment would unduly delay or disrupt the proceeding, or would otherwise result in an injustice to any party.(b)Withdrawal. Any complaint may be withdrawn at any time prior to the issuance of a final order based on it, by motion granted by the commission or examiner. A motion to withdraw shall be granted unless withdrawal would result in an injustice to any party. The commission shall not refund fees based on a withdrawal of a complaint.(5) CONCILIATION. The commission may cause an effort to reach informal settlement of all or part of a complaint to be undertaken by a commission designee. A conciliator so designated shall attempt through mediation to assist the parties in reaching an informal agreement resolving some or all of the issues that might otherwise require a hearing. The pendency of conciliation shall not preclude the scheduling or conduct of a hearing if scheduling is specifically requested by any party prior to the conclusion of conciliation. If the conciliator concludes that further conciliation efforts are unlikely to produce a settlement, the processing of the case shall proceed, including the scheduling of a hearing, if appropriate.(6) NOTICE OF HEARING. (a)When and by whom issued. At the specific request of a party or at the unsuccessful conclusion of conciliation, the commission or examiner shall schedule a date and time for the hearing and serve all parties named in the complaint and their representatives with a notice of hearing.(b)Contents. The notice of hearing shall include all of the following:1. A statement of the time, place, and nature of the hearing, including whether the case is a class 2 or 3 proceeding as defined in s. 227.01(3) (a) to (c), Stats. All complaint cases shall be designated as class 3 proceedings, except that cases in which a requested remedy involves a penalty, such as deprivation of a respondent's rights, immunities, privileges or remedies granted or afforded by the Municipal Employment Relations Act, shall be designated as a class 2 proceeding. Unless the parties have agreed otherwise, the hearing shall be held not less than 10 nor more than 40 days after the complaint was filed or a hearing was requested. The hearing may be rescheduled in the manner prescribed in s. ERC 12.04(2) (e).2. A statement of the legal authority and jurisdiction under which the hearing is to be held, and, in the case of a class 2 proceeding, a reference to the particular statutes and rules involved.3. A short and plain statement of the matters asserted, by reference to the pleadings on file, or otherwise.4. A statement that each named respondent shall file an answer to the complaint, specifying the names and addresses of the persons to be served with a copy of the answer and the date by which the answer is to be served on those persons.5. A statement that, to be timely, a motion to make the complaint more definite and certain under sub. (7) shall be received by the commission within 10 days after the earlier of the date the notice of hearing was issued or the date the commission notified the parties that the commission has received a request under sub. (5) that the hearing be scheduled prior to the conclusion of conciliation.6. A statement that affirmative defenses not raised by a timely answer are waived.(7) MOTION TO MAKE MORE DEFINITE AND CERTAIN. If a complaint is alleged to be so indefinite as to hinder a party in the preparation of its answer to the complaint, the party may, by motion, request the commission or examiner to order the complainant to file a statement supplying specified information to make the complaint more definite and certain. If the commission has notified the parties that it has received a request under sub. (5) for the hearing to be scheduled prior to the conclusion of conciliation, then a motion to make the complaint more definite and certain shall be filed no later than 10 days after the date of the commission's notice. Otherwise, the motion shall be filed no later than 10 days after the date the notice of hearing was issued. The commission or examiner may require a complainant to clarify its complaint at any time the commission or examiner finds it necessary and appropriate to do so.Wis. Admin. Code Employment Relations Commission ERC 12.02
CR 02-037: cr. Register June 2006 No. 606. eff. 7-1-06; CR 10-019: am. (6) (b) 4. Register June 2010 No. 654, eff. 7-1-10.