AN ACT Relating to noncomparable worth; amending RCW 28B.16.020, 28B.16.100, 41.06.020, and 41.06.150; and repealing RCW 28B.16.116 and 41.06.155.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

Sec. 1. Section 2, chapter 36, Laws of 1969 ex. sess. as last amended by section 1, chapter 75, Laws of 1983 1st ex. sess. and RCW 28B.16.020 are each amended to read as follows:

Unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the words used in this chapter have the meaning given in this section.

(1) "Institutions of higher education" are the University of Washington, Washington State University, Central Washington University, Eastern Washington University, Western Washington University, The Evergreen State College, and the various state community colleges;

(2) "Board" means the higher education personnel board established under the provisions of RCW 28B.16.060;

(3) "Related boards" means the state board for community college education and the higher education personnel board; and such other boards, councils and commissions related to higher education as may be established;

(4) "Classified service" means all positions at the institutions of higher education subject to the provisions of this chapter;

(5) ((~~"Comparable worth" means the provision of similar salaries for positions that require or impose similar responsibilities, judgments, knowledge, skills, and working conditions;~~

~~(6)~~)) "Competitive service" means all positions in the classified service for which a competitive examination is required as a condition precedent to appointment;

((~~(7)~~)) (6) "Noncompetitive service" means all positions in the classified service for which a competitive examination is not required;

((~~(8)~~)) (7) "Management employees" mean those classified employees under this chapter specified as management by the higher education personnel board, but the board shall not go below range 49, as established in the October 1981 higher education personnel board compensation plan, or its equivalent range in a subsequent compensation plan publication.

Sec. 2. Section 10, chapter 36, Laws of 1969 ex. sess. as last amended by section 2, chapter 75, Laws of 1983 1st ex. sess. and RCW 28B.16.100 are each amended to read as follows:

The higher education personnel board shall adopt rules, consistent with the purposes and provisions of this chapter and with the best standards of personnel administration, regarding the basis and procedures to be followed for:

(1) The dismissal, suspension, or demotion of an employee, and appeals therefrom;

(2) Certification of names for vacancies, including promotions and reemployment from layoff, with the number of names equal to four more names than there are vacancies to be filled, such names representing applicants rated highest on eligibility lists;

(3) Examination for all positions in the competitive and noncompetitive service;

(4) Appointments;

(5) Probationary periods of six to twelve months and rejections therein, depending on the job requirements of the class;

(6) Transfers;

(7) Sick leaves and vacations;

(8) Hours of work;

(9) Layoffs when necessary and subsequent reemployment;

(10) Determination of appropriate bargaining units within any institution or related boards: PROVIDED, That in making such determination the board shall consider the duties, skills, and working conditions of the employees, the history of collective bargaining by the employees and their bargaining representatives, the extent of organization among the employees, and the desires of the employees;

(11) Certification and decertification of exclusive bargaining representatives: PROVIDED, That after certification of an exclusive bargaining representative and upon the representative's request, the director shall hold an election among employees in a bargaining unit to determine by a majority whether to require as a condition of employment membership in the certified exclusive bargaining representative on or after the thirtieth day following the beginning of employment or the date of such election, whichever is the later, and the failure of an employee to comply with such condition of employment constitutes cause for dismissal: PROVIDED FURTHER, That no more often than once in each twelve-month period after expiration of twelve months following the date of the original election in a bargaining unit and upon petition of thirty percent of the members of a bargaining unit the director shall hold an election to determine whether a majority wish to rescind such condition of employment: PROVIDED FURTHER, That for purposes of this clause, membership in the certified exclusive bargaining representative is satisfied by the payment of monthly or other periodic dues and does not require payment of initiation, reinstatement, or any other fees or fines and includes full and complete membership rights: AND PROVIDED FURTHER, That in order to safeguard the right of nonassociation of public employees, based on bona fide religious tenets or teachings of a church or religious body of which such public employee is a member, such public employee shall pay to the union, for purposes within the program of the union as designated by such employee that would be in harmony with his individual conscience, an amount of money equivalent to regular union dues minus any included monthly premiums for union-sponsored insurance programs, and such employee shall not be a member of the union but is entitled to all the representation rights of a union member;

(12) Agreements between institutions or related boards and certified exclusive bargaining representatives providing for grievance procedures and collective negotiations on all personnel matters over which the institution or the related board may lawfully exercise discretion;

(13) Written agreements may contain provisions for payroll deductions of employee organization dues upon authorization by the employee member and for the cancellation of such payroll deduction by the filing of a proper prior notice by the employee with the institution and the employee organization: PROVIDED, That nothing contained herein permits or grants to any employee the right to strike or refuse to perform his official duties;

(14) Adoption and revision of comprehensive classification plans for all positions in the classified service, based on investigation and analysis of the duties and responsibilities of each such position;

(15) Allocation and reallocation of positions within the classification plan;

(16) Adoption and revision of salary schedules and compensation plans which reflect the prevailing rates in Washington state private industries and other governmental units for positions of a similar nature ((~~but the rates in the salary schedules or plans shall be increased if necessary to attain comparable worth under an implementation plan under RCW 28B.16.116~~)) and which shall be competitive in the state or the locality in which the institution or related boards are located, such adoption, revision, and implementation subject to approval as to availability of funds by the director of financial management in accordance with the provisions of chapter 43.88 RCW, and after consultation with the chief financial officer of each institution or related board for that institution or board, or in the case of community colleges, by the chief financial officer of the state board for community college education for the various community colleges;

(17) Training programs including in-service, promotional, and supervisory;

(18) Increment or merit increases within the series of steps for each pay grade; and

(19) Providing for veteran's preference as provided by existing statutes, with recognition of preference in regard to layoffs and subsequent reemployment for veterans and their widows by giving such eligible veterans and their widows additional credit in computing their seniority by adding to their unbroken higher education service, as defined by the board, the veteran's service in the military not to exceed five years of such service. For the purposes of this section, "veteran" means any person who has one or more years of active military service in any branch of the armed forces of the United States or who has less than one year's service and is discharged with a disability incurred in the line of duty or is discharged at the convenience of the government and who, upon termination of such service, has received an honorable discharge, a discharge for physical reasons with an honorable record, or a release from active military service with evidence of service other than that for which an undesirable, bad conduct, or dishonorable discharge shall be given: PROVIDED, HOWEVER, That the widow of a veteran is entitled to the benefits of this section regardless of the veteran's length of active military service: PROVIDED FURTHER, That for the purposes of this section "veteran" does not include any person who has voluntarily retired with twenty or more years of active military service and whose military retirement pay is in excess of five hundred dollars per month.

Sec. 3. Section 1, chapter 12, Laws of 1970 ex. sess. as last amended by section 4, chapter 75, Laws of 1983 1st ex. sess. and RCW 41.06.020 are each amended to read as follows:

Unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the words used in this chapter have the meaning given in this section.

(1) "Agency" means an office, department, board, commission, or other separate unit or division, however designated, of the state government and all personnel thereof; it includes any unit of state government established by law, the executive officer or members of which are either elected or appointed, upon which the statutes confer powers and impose duties in connection with operations of either a governmental or proprietary nature.

(2) "Board" means the state personnel board established under the provisions of RCW 41.06.110, except that this definition does not apply to the words "board" or "boards" when used in RCW 41.06.070.

(3) "Classified service" means all positions in the state service subject to the provisions of this chapter.

(4) "Competitive service" means all positions in the classified service for which a competitive examination is required as a condition precedent to appointment.

(5) ((~~"Comparable worth" means the provision of similar salaries for positions that require or impose similar responsibilities, judgments, knowledge, skills, and working conditions.~~

~~(6)~~)) "Management employees" means those employees:

(a) Who are classified under this chapter and who are exempt employees under this chapter and have their salary and fringe benefits determined under RCW 41.06.070; and

(b) Who are specified as management by the state personnel board; but the board shall not go below range 49, as established in the October 1981 state personnel board compensation plan, or its equivalent range in a subsequent compensation plan publication.

((~~(7)~~)) (6) "Noncompetitive service" means all positions in the classified service for which a competitive examination is not required.

((~~(8)~~)) (7) "Department" means an agency of government that has as its governing officer a person, or combination of persons such as a commission, board, or council, by law empowered to operate the agency responsible either to (a) no other public officer or (b) the governor.

((~~(9)~~)) (8) "Career development" means the progressive development of employee capabilities to facilitate productivity, job satisfaction, and upward mobility through work assignments as well as education and training that are both state-sponsored and are achieved by individual employee efforts, all of which shall be consistent with the needs and obligations of the state and its agencies.

((~~(10)~~)) (9) "Training" means activities designed to develop job-related knowledge and skills of employees.

((~~(11)~~)) (10) "Director" means the director of personnel appointed under the provisions of RCW 41.06.130.

Sec. 4. Section 4, chapter 53, Laws of 1982 1st ex. sess. as amended by section 5, chapter 75, Laws of 1983 1st ex. sess. and RCW 41.06.150 are each amended to read as follows:

The board shall adopt rules, consistent with the purposes and provisions of this chapter, as now or hereafter amended, and with the best standards of personnel administration, regarding the basis and procedures to be followed for:

(1) The reduction, dismissal, suspension, or demotion of an employee;

(2) Certification of names for vacancies, including departmental promotions and reemployment from layoff, with the number of names equal to four more names than there are vacancies to be filled, such names representing applicants rated highest on eligibility lists;

(3) Examinations for all positions in the competitive and noncompetitive service;

(4) Appointments;

(5) Training and career development;

(6) Probationary periods of six to twelve months and rejections therein, depending on the job requirements of the class, except that entry level state park rangers shall serve a probationary period of twelve months;

(7) Transfers;

(8) Sick leaves and vacations;

(9) Hours of work;

(10) Layoffs when necessary and subsequent reemployment;

(11) Determination of appropriate bargaining units within any agency: PROVIDED, That in making such determination the board shall consider the duties, skills, and working conditions of the employees, the history of collective bargaining by the employees and their bargaining representatives, the extent of organization among the employees, and the desires of the employees;

(12) Certification and decertification of exclusive bargaining representatives: PROVIDED, That after certification of an exclusive bargaining representative and upon the representative's request, the director shall hold an election among employees in a bargaining unit to determine by a majority whether to require as a condition of employment membership in the certified exclusive bargaining representative on or after the thirtieth day following the beginning of employment or the date of such election, whichever is the later, and the failure of an employee to comply with such a condition of employment constitutes cause for dismissal: PROVIDED FURTHER, That no more often than once in each twelve-month period after expiration of twelve months following the date of the original election in a bargaining unit and upon petition of thirty percent of the members of a bargaining unit the director shall hold an election to determine whether a majority wish to rescind such condition of employment: PROVIDED FURTHER, That for purposes of this clause, membership in the certified exclusive bargaining representative is satisfied by the payment of monthly or other periodic dues and does not require payment of initiation, reinstatement, or any other fees or fines and includes full and complete membership rights: AND PROVIDED FURTHER, That in order to safeguard the right of nonassociation of public employees, based on bona fide religious tenets or teachings of a church or religious body of which such public employee is a member, such public employee shall pay to the union, for purposes within the program of the union as designated by such employee that would be in harmony with his individual conscience, an amount of money equivalent to regular union dues minus any included monthly premiums for union-sponsored insurance programs, and such employee shall not be a member of the union but is entitled to all the representation rights of a union member;

(13) Agreements between agencies and certified exclusive bargaining representatives providing for grievance procedures and collective negotiations on all personnel matters over which the appointing authority of the appropriate bargaining unit of such agency may lawfully exercise discretion;

(14) Written agreements may contain provisions for payroll deductions of employee organization dues upon authorization by the employee member and for the cancellation of such payroll deduction by the filing of a proper prior notice by the employee with the appointing authority and the employee organization: PROVIDED, That nothing contained herein permits or grants to any employee the right to strike or refuse to perform his official duties;

(15) Adoption and revision of a comprehensive classification plan for all positions in the classified service, based on investigation and analysis of the duties and responsibilities of each such position;

(16) Allocation and reallocation of positions within the classification plan;

(17) Adoption and revision of a state salary schedule to reflect the prevailing rates in Washington state private industries and other governmental units ((~~but the rates in the salary schedules or plans shall be increased if necessary to attain comparable worth under an implementation plan under RCW 41.06.155~~)), such adoption and revision subject to approval by the director of financial management in accordance with the provisions of chapter 43.88 RCW;

(18) Increment or merit increases within the series of steps for each pay grade;

(19) Providing for veteran's preference as required by existing statutes, with recognition of preference in regard to layoffs and subsequent reemployment for veterans and their widows by giving such eligible veterans and their widows additional credit in computing their seniority by adding to their unbroken state service, as defined by the board, the veteran's service in the military not to exceed five years. For the purposes of this section, "veteran" means any person who has one or more years of active military service in any branch of the armed forces of the United States or who has less than one year's service and is discharged with a disability incurred in the line of duty or is discharged at the convenience of the government and who, upon termination of such service has received an honorable discharge, a discharge for physical reasons with an honorable record, or a release from active military service with evidence of service other than that for which an undesirable, bad conduct, or dishonorable discharge shall be given: PROVIDED, HOWEVER, That the widow of a veteran is entitled to the benefits of this section regardless of the veteran's length of active military service: PROVIDED FURTHER, That for the purposes of this section "veteran" does not include any person who has voluntarily retired with twenty or more years of active military service and whose military retirement pay is in excess of five hundred dollars per month;

(20) Permitting agency heads to delegate the authority to appoint, reduce, dismiss, suspend, or demote employees within their agencies if such agency heads do not have specific statutory authority to so delegate: PROVIDED, That the board may not authorize such delegation to any position lower than the head of a major subdivision of the agency.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. The following acts or parts of acts are each repealed:

(1) Section 3, chapter 75, Laws of 1983 1st ex. sess. and RCW 28B.16.116; and

(2) Section 6, chapter 75, Laws of 1983 1st ex. sess. and RCW 41.06.155.