Washington Labor and Employment Blog
The latest case law and legal developments in Washington labor & employment law.
By: Chris Casillas and Sarah E. Derry
In Green River College, PERC Examiner Jamie Siegel held that the employer, Green River College, a college in Auburn, Washington, did not commit an unfair labor practice when it implemented a new “Program Prioritization Process” (PPP) without bargaining. Examiner Siegel determined that the new program was not a mandatory subject of bargaining, so the employer was not obligated to negotiate its decision prior to implementation.
By: Jordan L. Jones
In King County (Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 587), PERC held that ATU Local 587 committed a ULP when it submitted a permissive subject of bargaining to interest arbitration. Examiner De La Rosa found that King County’s decision to move the Millwrights from the Vehicle Maintenance Section to the Power & Facilities Section was a managerial prerogative and therefore a permissive subject of bargaining.
By Chris Casillas and Sarah Derry
In Warden School District, PERC Examiner Whitney considered two unrelated issues: First, the employer did not commit a ULP by not bargaining with the union over whether to adopt a perpetual calendar for the school year. Examiner Whitney found that: (1) the employer had been using the same calendar adoption process for nine years, so there was no change, and (2) although the union wanted to adopt a “perpetual calendar,” the Union never directly proposed it, so the school district did not refuse to bargain. Second, Examiner Whitney determined that the school district did not interfere with a teacher’s union rights by threatening to fire him if he did not take on another class, in part because another teacher testified that she did not think the complaining teacher had been threatened.
By Therese Norton
In a recent decision, PERC Hearing Examiner Page A. Garcia held that the International Organization of Masters, Mates and Pilots union provided employees with adequate notice and opportunity to vote on the ratification of tentative agreements the union had negotiated with the Washington State Ferries. Washington State Ferries, Decision 11899 (MRNE, 2013).
By Rick Gautschi
In City of Seattle (Seattle Police Officers’ Guild), Decision 11291-A (PECB, 2012), a police officer alleged that the employer subjected her to retaliation, discrimination, and a hostile work environment, and that the employer took no action regarding those conditions. Further, she asserted that because it claimed that there was a perceived conflict of interest between the officer and her ex-husband union member, her union failed to file a grievance on her behalf to address the employer’s inaction. In addition, she asserted that the union acted arbitrarily, discriminatorily, and in bad faith in declining to file a grievance on her behalf. [Read more…]
By Jim Cline & Peter Haller
In Bethel School District, Examiner Whitney partially dismissed a complaint that alleged that the Employer had engaged in direct dealing even though it had directly proposed a plan to employees without union representation present and misreported the status of the meetings to the union.
By James Cline and Stephen Hatton
In Spokane County, Decision 13435 (PECB, 2021), PERC Hearing Examiner Erin Slone-Gomez found that the County had violated its duty to bargain in good faith by insisting their negotiation sessions with the Corrections Union be open to the public. She found ground rules for negotiations to be a permissive subject of bargaining.
[Read more…]
