In Wisconsin most labor arbitrations are heard by Board or staff members of the Wisconsin Employment Relations Board. A majority of the rest are heard by ad hoc arbitrators appointed from panels submitted to the parties through the facilities of the American Arbitration Association or the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service. The Board also furnishes panels of ad hoc arbitrators although this service is rarely used.
The factors which this article seeks to analyze are largely limited to Board or staff member arbitrations. (Occasionally the practicing lawyer will find himself involved in such an arbitration.) To this end, the article will evaluate the arbitration process and show that the special environment of the Wisconsin setting greatly affects the role of the arbitrator. As a prelude to the examination of the Wisconsin Employment Relations Board staff arbitrators and the role which they play, it will be helpful to point out the major arbitral roles which have developed in the field.
