In the Washington State Department of Corrections, the Examiner ruled that the Department of Corrections (DOC) cannot unilaterally change its practice of using a volunteer list to assign female correctional officers (COs) to conduct strip searches on transgender female inmates.
In Waleed Muhammad v. Association For Higher Education, PERC ruled that the Union retaliated against a non-tenured employee for engaging in protected activity when the Union president submitted negative feedback to the employee’s pre-tenure committee regarding the employee’s demeanor and temperament towards other faculty members. The hearing Examiner reasoned that the Union president’s submission of feedback constituted union interference because the non-tenured employee was not given the chance to discuss the concerns and improve upon them.
In Teamster Local 117 v. Washington State Department of Corrections, PERC dismissed a representation petition which sought to place unrepresented supervisors in a bargaining that was separate from the exclusive bargaining unit of like supervisors. The Examiner reasoned that splitting the supervisors into different bargaining units would create work jurisdiction and fragmentation issues.
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.
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.
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.
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.
In King County, the Public Employment Relations Commission affirmed its Examiner’s prior decision in which King County was found to have discriminated against an employee by removing him from his elected position on a safety committee. The Commission held that even though the County offered a nondiscriminatory reason for its action the Union successfully demonstrated that the County's actions were merely a pretext for discriminating against the employee due to his advocacy for regular safety committee meetings.
In Okanogan County, Examiner Todd ruled that the County refused to bargain when it unilaterally contracted out bargaining unit work to third-party security contractors after making the representation that it was rescinding its proposal to reclassify a then-vacant bargaining unit position.
In University of Washington, Examiner Bradley ruled that University of Washington (UW) changing bargaining unit employees’ overtime eligibility status to comply with Washington State Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) rules was not a unilateral change to a mandatory subject of bargaining.
