University of Washington, Decision 10262 (PSRA, 2008)
STATE OF WASHINGTON
BEFORE THE PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS COMMISSION
In the matter of the petition of: )
)
SERVICE EMPLOYEES INTERNATIONAL )
UNION, LOCAL 925 ) CASE 22108-E-08-3415
)
For clarification of existing ) DECISION 10262 - PSRA
bargaining units of employees of: )
) ORDER MERGING
UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON ) BARGAINING UNITS
___________________________________)
Douglas, Drachler, McKee, by Martha Barron, Attorney at Law,
and Michael Laslett, Higher Education Director, for the union.
Lou Pisano, Director of Labor Relations, for the employer.
On November 14, 2008, Service Employees International Union, Local
925 (union), filed a petition with the Public Employment Relations
Commission, concerning certain employees of the University of
Washington (employer). The union sought to merge the sports
equipment attendants into an existing bargaining unit of
nonsupervisory employees of this employer. An investigation
conference was conducted on December 16, 2208, by Representation
Coordinator Sally Iverson.
ISSUE
Would a merged unit encompassing the two existing nonsupervisory
units at the University of Washington constitute an appropriate
bargaining unit?
The Executive Director accepts the information and stipulations
presented by the parties, acting under WAC 391-25-426, merges the
sports equipment attendants into the existing nonsupervisory
bargaining unit.
APPLICABLE LEGAL PRINCIPLES
The Personnel System Reform Act of 2002 (PSRA) has various effective
dates. A new collective bargaining system for state civil service
employees is codified in Chapter 41.80 RCW, of which one section
that took effect on June 13, 2002, is pertinent here:
RCW 41.80.070 BARGAINING UNITS - CERTIFICATION. (1) A
bargaining unit of employees covered by this chapter existing
on June 13, 2002, shall be considered an appropriate unit,
unless the unit does not meet all the requirements of (a) and
(b) of this subsection. The commission, after hearing upon
reasonable notice to all interested parties, shall decide, in
each application for certification as an exclusive bargaining
representative, the unit appropriate for certification. In
determining the new units or modification of existing units,
the commission shall consider: the duties, skills and working
conditions of the employees; the history of collective
bargaining; the extent of organization among the employees; the
desires of the employees; and the avoidance of excessive
fragmentation. . . .
. . . .
(3) If a single employee organization is the exclusive
bargaining representative for two or more units, upon petition
by the employee organization, the units may be consolidated
into a single larger unit if the commission considers the
larger unit to be appropriate. If consolidation is
appropriate, the commission shall certify the employee
organization as the exclusive bargaining representative of the
new unit.
(emphasis added). The Commission adopted a special rule to
implement that statutory provision as follows:
WAC 391-25-426 SPECIAL PROVISION -STATE CIVIL SERVICE
EMPLOYEES. An employee organization that represents two or
more bargaining units of state civil service employees may
obtain a merger of those units by filing a petition under WAC
391-25-420(2)(a). If the merged unit is found to be
appropriate under WAC 391-25-420(2)(c)(i) and (ii), the
employee organization shall be certified as exclusive
bargaining representative without need for unit determination
elections.
In essence, the special rule eliminates the need for concurrent unit
determination elections to validate the merger of
separately-organized bargaining units.
ANALYSIS
The union represents several bargaining units of employees of this
employer. This case involves two separate bargaining units that
were organized at different times:
* All nonsupervisory civil service employees of the University of
Washington performing technical, administrative,
office-clerical, and support functions in the employer's
academic and medical areas of operation, excluding confidential
employees, internal auditors, supervisors, and employees
included in any bargaining unit. University of Washington,
Decision 9592 (PSRA, 2007).
* All full-time and regular part-time sports equipment attendants
of the University of Washington, excluding supervisors,
confidential employees, casual employees and all other
employees. University of Washington, Decision 10178(PSRA, 2008).
The "fragmentation" and "merger" components of RCW 41.80.070 can be
presumed to reflect legislative concern about the proliferation of
bargaining units. By the stipulations now before the Executive
Director, the parties seek to have two bargaining units of
nonsupervisory employees merged under WAC 391-25-426. The parties
have submitted information and stipulations which satisfy the
requirements of WAC 391-25-420(2)(c)(ii), and nothing has come to
the attention of the Commission staff or Executive Director that
contradicts the propriety of the action requested by the parties.
In this case, the merger of bargaining units addresses the
"fragmentation" component of the statutory unit determination
criteria and implements the statutory endorsement of merging
historical bargaining units.
FINDINGS OF FACT
1. The University of Washington is an institution of higher
education of the state of Washington, and is an employer within
the meaning of RCW 41.80.005(10).
2. The Service Employees International Union, Local 925, an
employee organization within the meaning of RCW 41.80.005(7),
is the exclusive bargaining representative of two separate
bargaining units of nonsupervisory employees of the University
of Washington.
3. The parties have stipulated that the nonsupervisory employees
in the historical bargaining unit and sports equipment
attendants have similar duties, skills and working conditions,
and share a community of interest.
4. No facts have been discovered or brought to the attention of
the Executive Director which call into question the propriety
of the proposed merger described in these findings of fact.
CONCLUSIONS OF LAW
1. The Public Employment Relations Commission has jurisdiction in
this matter under Chapter 41.80 RCW and WAC 391-25-426.
2. The merger of the bargaining units described in paragraph 3 of
the foregoing findings of fact will result in an appropriate
unit for the purposes of collective bargaining under RCW
41.80.070, implementing the fragmentation and merger components
of that section.
ORDER
1. The historical bargaining units shall be merged into one
bargaining unit described as follows:
All non-supervisory civil service employees of the University
of Washington performing technical, administrative,
office-clerical, and support functions in the employer's
academic and medical areas of operation, excluding confidential
employees, internal auditors, supervisors, and employees
included in any other bargaining unit.
2. The Service Employees International Union, Local 925, shall
continue to be the exclusive bargaining representative of all
employees in the merged unit.
ISSUED at Olympia, Washington, on this 30th day of December, 2008.
PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS COMMISSION
CATHLEEN CALLAHAN, Executive Director
This order will be the final order of the
agency unless a notice of appeal is filed
with the Commission under WAC 391-25-660.