Washington Labor and Employment Blog
The latest case law and legal developments in Washington labor & employment law.
By Jim Cline and Peter Haller
In International Association of Fire Fighters Local 542 v. Clark County Fire District 6, PERC dismissed a complaint alleging that the decision not to promote a 24-year veteran firefighter to Battalion Chief was motivated by an anti-union animus. The hearing Examiner reasoned that although the veteran firefighter’s involvement in union activities may have upset the Employer, there was ultimately a non-discriminatory justification for the decision.
By Jim Cline and Peter Haller
In City of Kent v. Kent Police Officers Association, the PERC arbitrator ruled that the City of Kent had just cause to terminate an officer alleged to engaged in conduct unbecoming of an officer. The Arbitrator reasoned that termination was justified given the officer’s lengthy disciplinary history coupled with the egregious nature of his conduct.
By Jim Cline and Sam Hagshenas
In King County, Examiner Casillas ruled that King County unilaterally changed the working conditions of King County Department of Public Defense (DPD) workers during a short-lived pilot program that transferred inmates out of the County.
[Read more…]By Jim Cline and Sam Hagshenas
In Arlington School District, the PERC Examiner found that the District had violated its duty to bargain and had skimmed bargaining unit work from the ironically named Arlington Non-Rep Group (NRG). The school district did not believe the NRG was a union, but prior practice demonstrated that the District had historically voluntarily recognized the NRG as a bargaining unit and thus violated its duty to bargain.
By Jim Cline and Sam Hagshenas
In King County, Examiner Willaford determined that the Union successfully proved the County violated its duty to bargain by making mandatory overtime a condition of employment. The Examiner ruled that King County’s practice of medically separating corrections officers with medical restrictions on working overtime was a unilateral change to a mandatory subject of bargaining.
