SENATE BILL REPORT

                           EHB 2657

AS REPORTED BY COMMITTEE ON LABOR & COMMERCE, FEBRUARY 25, 1994

Brief Description:  Changing the definition of "uniformed personnel" for public employees' collective bargaining.

SPONSORS: Representatives G. Fisher, Tate, King, Conway, Orr, Forner, Campbell, Brough, Mielke, Van Luven and Talcott

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE & LABOR

SENATE COMMITTEE ON LABOR & COMMERCE

Majority Report:  Do pass as amended. 

     Signed by Senators Moore, Chairman; Prentice, Vice Chairman; McAuliffe, Pelz, Prince, Sutherland, Vognild and Wojahn.

Staff:  Jonathan Seib (786‑7427)

Hearing Dates: February 24, 1994; February 25, 1994

BACKGROUND:

Employees of cities, counties and other political subdivisions of the state bargain their wages and working conditions under the Public Employees' Collective Bargaining Act (PECBA).  For uniformed personnel, the act recognizes the public policy against strikes as a means of settling labor disputes.  To resolve disputes involving these uniformed personnel, the PECBA requires binding arbitration if negotiations for a contract reach impasse and cannot be resolved through mediation.

Legislation enacted during the 1993 legislative session extended the binding interest arbitration provisions of the PECBA for uniformed personnel to several categories of public employees, including:

(1)employees of port districts performing fire fighting duties if the port district is in a county with a population of 1 million or more; and

(2)advanced life support technicians who are employed by public hospital districts.

Other 1993 amendments to the same statute created technical conflicts in the code.  The Code Reviser elected not to merge the conflicting statutes.

SUMMARY:

Employees of a port district in a county with a population of 100,000 or more whose duties include crash-fire rescue or other fire fighting duties and emergency medical technicians are covered by the binding interest arbitration provisions of the Public Employees' Collective Bargaining Act for uniformed personnel.

The conflicting statutes enacted in 1993 are merged.

SUMMARY OF PROPOSED COMMITTEE AMENDMENT:

The language adding certain port employees and the emergency medical technicians to the binding arbitration provisions of the Public Employees' Collective Bargaining Act is removed.

The language merging conflicting statutes enacted in 1993 remains.

Appropriation:  none

Revenue:  none

Fiscal Note:  available

TESTIMONY FOR:  None

TESTIMONY AGAINST:  None

TESTIFIED:  No one