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(a) There is hereby created as a separate independent board of the Government of the Virgin Islands, a Public Employees Relations Board (PERB). The PERB shall be composed of five members recommended by the Governor and approved by the Legislature. Not less than two of the appointed members shall be residents of the District of St. Croix and not less than two shall be residents of the District of St. Thomas and St. John. Three of the members shall have experience involving labor relations, one shall have experience as a Class I government employee within the territory, one shall have experience as a Class II government employee within the territory and one shall have experience as a Class III government employee within the territory; three of the members shall have experience involving labor relations on behalf of management. The fifth member shall serve as Chairman of the PERB. The PERB may employ a full-time Executive Director and such staff and contractual employees at such compensation as the PERB considers appropriate.
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(b) Members of the PERB shall serve terms of five years, except that the term of one of the members appointed in 1994 and one of the members appointed in 1995 shall be for three years, as designated by the Governor at the time of appointment, in order to stagger the terms of the members of the PERB. Members appointed to fill vacancies shall be appointed only for the unexpired portion of the term of the member who he is to succeed. Any member may be reappointed. Each member shall hold office until his successor is appointed and confirmed.
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(c) All actions taken by the PERB shall have the affirmative vote of not less than three members of the PERB, or as may otherwise be provided in the chapter.
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(d) Each member of the PERB not an employee of the Government of the Virgin Islands other than the Chairman of the PERB shall be compensated at the rate of $75 per day or any fraction thereof spent in the work of the PERB. The Chairman shall be compensated at the rate of $75 per day or any fraction thereof spent in the work of the PERB. Members of the PERB who are employees of the Government of the United States Virgin Islands shall not have their compensation or annual leave reduced because of their work on the PERB. The travel expenses and actual reasonable subsistence costs, as determined by the Chairman, shall be reimbursed to each member of the PERB when such expenses and costs are necessary to the work of the PERB.
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(e) The Commissioner of Labor, or his designee, shall serve as staff-secretary to the PERB and the personnel of the Department of Labor shall perform administrative functions for the PERB.