HOUSE BILL REPORT

HB 498

BYRepresentatives Sayan, Patrick, Wang, Winsley, Fisch, Day, Walker, Vekich, R. King and Dellwo

Changing provisions relating to collective bargaining for fire fighters and emergency medical personnel.

House Committe on Commerce & Labor

Majority Report:     The substitute bill be substituted therefor and the substitute bill do pass.  (9)

     Signed by Representatives Wang, Chair; Cole, Vice Chair; Fisch, Fisher, R. King, O'Brien, Patrick, Sayan and Walker.

Minority Report:     Do not pass.  (2)

     Signed by Representatives Sanders and C. Smith.

House Staff:Chris Cordes (786-7117)

AS REPORTED BY COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE & LABOR FEBRUARY 16, 1987

BACKGROUND:

Uniformed personnel, including law enforcement officers, fire fighters and advanced life support technicians, are required to submit to binding interest arbitration if collective bargaining negotiations reach impasse.  In making awards in cases involving fire fighters, arbitrators have reached conflicting decisions on the meaning of "like personnel of like employers" when used for comparison purposes.

SUMMARY:

SUBSTITUTE BILL:  The provision that references "fire fighters" as defined in the Law Enforcement Officers and Firefighters (LEOFF) pension law is deleted from the definition of "uniformed personnel" for the purposes of collective bargaining.  The definition of "uniformed personnel" is amended to include employees regularly employed on a full-time or part-time basis in a public fire department in fire suppression, fire investigation, fire inspection, fire dispatching and emergency medical services.

The standards to be used by an arbitrator in making awards involving employees in a public fire department are amended to include comparisons with other fire departments of similar size on the west coast of the United States, unless an adequate comparison is available among Washington public fire departments.

The definition of advanced life support technician is moved to a different section of the statute.  Other technical changes are made.

SUBSTITUTE BILL COMPARED TO ORIGINAL:  A provision is deleted requiring an arbitrator to compare employers who are in a similar economic environment.

Fiscal Note:    Requested February 17, 1987.

House Committee ‑ Testified For:     Jim Webster, Washington State Council of Fire Fighters.

House Committee - Testified Against: Kathleen Collins, Association of Washington Cities; Jerry Biesen, City of Yakima, Fire Chief; and Lynn Carmicheal, City of Yakima, Councilwoman.

House Committee - Testimony For:     Arbitrators have made conflicting decisions under the statutory standards.  These decisions should be clarified.  In addition, fire fighter specialties have developed that should be included in the binding arbitration process.

House Committee - Testimony Against: Binding arbitration procedures should not be extended beyond the fire fighters presently covered.  Providing for both local and west coast comparable employers will add confusion to the procedures.