Jim Cline and Chris Casillas opened the Firm’s Annual Client Training Seminar to announce that they are launching a new partnership. [Read more…]
June 3, 2014 by
Trial Court Ordered To Reconsider Whether County Facing Budget Shortfall Must Bargain Layoffs
By Chris Casillas
A Washington Court of Appeals recently sent a case involving Kitsap County’s decision to layoff two corrections officers back to the Trial Court for further consideration. In Kitsap County v. Kitsap County Correctional Officers’ Guild, Inc., the Appeals Court determined that the Trial Court erred when it failed to conduct the required Balancing Analysis to determine whether the County’s decision to layoff two corrections officers, based on an alleged jail budget shortfall, was a mandatory or permissive subject of bargaining. [Read more…]
May 16, 2014 by
Cline & Associates Welcomes Attorney, Erica Shelley Nelson
Cline & Associates welcomes new attorney, Erica Shelley Nelson. Erica received her B.A. in Political Science from Western Washington University in June 2001. She graduated from Gonzaga Law School in 2005, and participated as a member of Gonzaga’s National Trial Team. [Read more…]
April 18, 2014 by
PERC Examiner Finds No Discrimination in Temporary Demotion Caused by Unrelated Funding and Workload Issues
By Therese Norton
In Seattle School District, PERC Examiner Emily Whitney dismissed a discrimination complaint brought by the Seattle/King County Building and Construction Trades Council against the Seattle School District. The Trades Council had alleged that the School District discriminated against a foreperson in the sheet metal shop when it demoted him after laying off two other staff members.
April 18, 2014 by
College Satisfied Required Effects Bargaining of Change in Technology
By Therese Norton
In Seattle Community College, the American Federation of Teachers, Local 1789 alleged that the College committed a refusal to bargain violation when it unilaterally changed which online Learning Management System (LMS) it used without an opportunity to bargain the decision or the effects of the decision. PERC Examiner Casey King concluded that the decision to change the technology was not a mandatory subject of bargaining and that the College had sufficiently bargained the effects of its decision.
April 11, 2014 by
PERC Affirmed Ruling of No Discrimination and No Interference by Port of Seattle Against Shop Steward
By Therese Norton
In Port of Seattle, the Public Employee Relations Commission affirmed Examiner Martin’s ruling that the Port of Seattle did not discriminate against a shop steward when a supervisor “coached” him in his duties. Decision 11848-A (PECB, 2014). The Commission also affirmed Examiner Martin’s ruling that the Port of Seattle did not interfere with the shop steward’s collective bargaining rights through statements made by his supervisor.
April 11, 2014 by
Court of Appeals Holds That When Yakima Police Officer’s Disability Manifests Itself as Insubordination, City of Yakima can Terminate
By Emily Nelson
In Brownfield v. City of Yakima, the Washington Court of Appeals, Division III, found that Yakima police officer Oscar Brownfield, fired for insubordination in 2007, failed to support his claim that he was actually fired because of a disability. The Court held that his refusal to submit to a fitness for duty examination, not the disability that led to the examination requested was the proximate cause of the discharge.
April 4, 2014 by
PERC Examiner Finds No Discrimination or Interference Against Monroe Corrections Sergeant
By Therese Norton
In State – Corrections, PERC Examiner Emily Whitney dismissed a discrimination and interference complaint brought by the Teamsters Local 117 against the Washington State Department of Corrections. Decision 12002 (PSRA, 2014). The Teamsters alleged that the Department discriminated against a corrections sergeant who had previously testified in a separate PERC unfair labor practice hearing by investigating him regarding the distribution of a “sensitive” video and by denying him a promotional opportunity. Separately, the Teamsters alleged that the Department made statements that interfered with the collective bargaining rights of a unit member and shop steward.
March 28, 2014 by
PERC Examiner Finds Employer Removal of Union Posters is Not a ULP
By Therese Norton
In Kittitas County Public Hospital District 1, PERC Examiner Page Garcia dismissed the Washington State Nurses Association’s complaint that Kittitas Valley Healthcare refused to bargain in violation of state labor law by making a unilateral change to the past practice of allowing the Association to post its materials at the hospital. Decision 11992 (PECB, 2014). Generally, union use of bulletin boards has been found to constitute a mandatory subject of bargaining, and in this case, the Examiner again determined that any change in how bulletin boards were used at the hospital would have to be bargained with the union. Ultimately, however, Examiner Garcia ruled that the Association failed to establish the existence of a past practice to post materials at all department break room bulletin boards, in addition to the single union designated bulletin board. As a result, the union could not carry its burden that a unilateral change violation had occurred. [Read more…]
January 10, 2014 by
PERC Dismissal of Untimely Lake Washington School District ULP Serves As Important Reminder to Pay Close Attention to All Timelines
By Jim Cline
A recent decision by PERC hearing examiner in Lake Washington School District and described in more detail in our recent blog article serves as an important reminder to pay close attention to all timelines. Although this decision arose in the context of an unfair labor practice complaint and PERC six-month statute of limitations, the same lesson applies in the processing of grievances under your labor contract.
