Archives for October 2013

By Therese Norton

In Port of Seattle, Hearing Examiner Emily Martin found that the Port did not discriminate against Officer Brian Torre, the Shop Steward for the Teamsters Local 117 Commissioned Officers Bargaining Unit. Although Officer Torre was engaged in protected activity by serving as a shop steward, the union member could not show that he was “deprived of an ascertainable right or benefit” when the Port’s sole adverse action was to “coach” him on “providing better customer service.” Examiner Martin also found criticism of Officer Torre by Commander Jon Hornbuckle, who was also a Teamster shop steward for the supervisor’s unit, did not constitute unlawful interference.

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By Therese Norton 

Regressive bargaining occurs when one party at the bargaining table in some manner attempts to make a proposal that is less attractive than the proposals it had previous advanced.  In City of Tacoma, PERC Hearing Examiner Claire Nickleberry found that the City breached its good faith bargaining obligation by making a regressive wage proposal. [Read more…]

By Therese Norton

In Washington State Ferries, Examiner Whitney concluded that the Washington State Ferries committed an unfair labor practice (ULP) when it unilaterally eliminated a Kingston Ferry shed that ferry workers used as a break room, without providing the Inland Boatman’s Union an opportunity to bargain.  The employer was ordered to reinstate the shed break room.   Washington State Ferries, Decision 11825 (MRNE, 2013). [Read more…]

By Therese Norton

In Pierce County, PERC Examiner Emily Whitney concluded that Pierce County did not commit an unfair labor practice (ULP) regarding deputy sheriff’s leave use during the snow closures in 2012. The County had determined that deputy sheriff’s would be deemed essential and would have to submit paid leave in the event they were absent.  The Deputy Sheriff’s Guild filed a ULP asserting that the distinction between “essential” and “nonessential” employees had not been negotiated and that no leave should be required if the deputies were unable to report to work. But Whitney concluded that there was no change to the status quo regarding deputies during the snow closures, and that the County did not unilaterally change the deputies leave utilization.  Pierce County, Decision 11818. [Read more…]

By Jim Cline

In another setback for Kitsap County, the Public Employment Relations Commission upheld a previous ruling that a Kitsap County Deputy prosecutor unlawfully undermined an agreement that had been reached between the Kitsap Dispatchers Guild and the County. InKitsap County, Decision 11675-A (PECB 2013), the Commission held that it was a breach of the County’s duty to bargain “in good faith” when it refused to ratify an agreement that it had already informed the Guild was agreeable to the County commissioners. [Read more…]