November 7, 2014 By

PERC finds Deputy Sheriff’s Association Bargained Regressively on Eve of Interest Arbitration

By Therese Norton

MaliceBoth employer and union can violate their good faith bargaining obligations under the state collective bargaining laws when one party advances proposals prior to interest arbitration that are regressive from proposals made earlier in negotiations. In Spokane County (Spokane County Deputy Sheriff’s Association), PERC Examiner Stephen W. Irvin found, and the Commission affirmed, that the Spokane County Deputy Sheriff’s Association breached its good faith bargaining obligations by submitting a regressive wage proposal after impasse and shortly before the parties’ scheduled interest arbitration hearing.

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Filed Under: Bad Faith Bargaining
August 29, 2014 By

PERC Affirms Ruling Union Improperly Circumvented Employer’s Designated Collective Bargaining Rep

By Therese Norton

bargaining 2In Kiona Benton School District, the Public Employee Relations Commission affirmed Examiner Coss’s finding that the Kiona Benton Education Association, the Union that represents certain teachers in the School District, breached its good faith bargaining obligation under State collective bargaining laws by refusing to communicate with the District’s designated collective bargaining representatives.

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Filed Under: Bad Faith Bargaining
November 6, 2013 By

PERC Reverses Examiner and Finds WSU Engaged in Bad Faith Bargaining with Roofers Union

By Therese Norton

In Washington State University, the Public Employment Relations Commission upheld an appeal by a union that WSU committed an unfair labor practice, reversing the Hearing Examiner. The union alleged that WSU unlawfully contracted out a roof repair project and breached its good faith bargaining obligation in the manner in which the employer invoked a contractual time limit for bargaining. With one Commissioner absent, the divided remaining two commissioners were split on the “skimming” charge, so the Examiner decision that no skimming occurred stands.  But, the Commission determined that 13 other pending bargaining demands were improperly ignored by WSU.

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Filed Under: Bad Faith Bargaining, Duty to Bargain
October 23, 2013 By

PERC Examiner Finds that Union’s Refusal to Communicate with Employer’s Designated Collective Bargaining Rep is a ULP

By Therese Norton

Both unions and employers have the right to designate who represents them in the collective bargaining process. In Kiona Benton School District, PERC Hearing Examiner Guy Coss ruled, without a hearing, after a motion for “summary judgment”, that the Kiona Benton Education Association breached its duty to bargain in good faith by refusing to bargain with the School District’s designated collective bargaining representatives.

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Filed Under: Bad Faith Bargaining, Duty to Bargain, Public Sector Collective Bargaining Rights
October 23, 2013 By

PERC Examiner Rules WSP Interfered with Union Rights when it Ordered Trooper’s Association Rep Not to Interview Potential Witnesses in a Discipline Matter

By Therese Norton

A union representative is generally permitted to assist a fellow union member who is facing a discipline investigation. But, does that assistance include speaking with potential witnesses?  And if so, when can a union representative speak with those potential witnesses?

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Filed Under: Bad Faith Bargaining, Duty to Bargain, Public Sector Collective Bargaining Rights
October 21, 2013 By

PERC Examiner Finds No Bad Faith in AFSCME’s Bargaining with Clallam County

By Therese Norton

In Clallam CountyPERC Examiner Emily K. Whitney found that the Washington State Council of County and City Employees AFSCME Locals (unions) did not breach their obligation to bargain in good faith with the employer Clallam County.  The employer alleged that the unions refused to reform a mutual mistake to memorandums of agreements (MOAs), excluded the employer’s bargaining representative from the bargaining process and refused to provide relevant information. Clallam County, Decisions 11829 and 11830 (PECB, 2013).

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Filed Under: Bad Faith Bargaining, Duty to Bargain, Public Sector Collective Bargaining Rights
October 18, 2013 By

PERC affirms that Legal Representation for Police Officers in Civil Lawsuits is not a Mandatory Subject of Bargaining

By Therese Norton

Employers commit an unfair labor practice if they do not engage in good faith bargaining of “personnel matters, including wages, hours and working conditions.” In a recent decision involving the City of Seattle and the Seattle Police Guild, the Public Employment Relations Commission examined the scope of an employer’s obligation to bargain an employer provided benefit of legal representation for police officers involved in civil lawsuits.

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Filed Under: Bad Faith Bargaining, Duty to Bargain, Public Sector Collective Bargaining Rights
April 26, 2013 By

PERC Finds that Unilateral Implementation Following Negotiation with a Fixed Outcome is an Unfair Labor Practice

By Therese Norton

In Yakima Valley Community College,11326-A (PECB, 2013), the Commission found that the employer breached its good faith bargaining obligation when it unilaterally implemented its proposal, after it approached bargaining with a fixed outcome in mind to reduce wages. Contrary to the employer’s assertions that it was bargaining under budgetary terms imposed by the Legislature, the Commission found that the parties were not at a good faith impasse in bargaining and that unilateral implementation was not warranted because there was time to bargain the impact of the reduction of the employer’s budget on the bargaining unit.  Therefore, it concluded, the employer acted improperly when it unilaterally implemented a temporary change to employee wages and work hours. 

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Filed Under: Bad Faith Bargaining, Duty to Bargain, Public Sector Collective Bargaining Rights
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