H-1536.1  _______________________________________________

                          HOUSE BILL 1970

          _______________________________________________

State of Washington      54th Legislature     1995 Regular Session

By Representatives Huff, Hargrove, Casada, Benton, Lambert, Beeksma, Pennington, Fuhrman, Mulliken, L. Thomas, Carrell, McMahan, Smith and Stevens

Read first time 02/17/95.  Referred to Committee on Government Operations.

Making it an unfair practice to retaliate against a state employee based on their participation or nonparticipation in diversity training.

    AN ACT Relating to diversity training for state employees; adding a new section to chapter 41.06 RCW; and adding a new section to chapter 49.60 RCW.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.  A new section is added to chapter 41.06 RCW to read as follows:

    (1) No record may be made of the attendance or nonattendance of individual state employees at diversity training seminars.  No state employee may be reprimanded or otherwise subject to disciplinary action for participation or nonparticipation in diversity training.

    (2) No state manager or supervisor may discriminate against or make negative comments about a state employee based on the employee's participation or nonparticipation in diversity training.  Violation of this subsection is an unfair practice under chapter 49.60 RCW.

    (3) All state employees within an agency shall be given written notice of the time and location of diversity training seminars, and no attempt other than the written notice shall be made to influence state employees to attend diversity training.

    (4) Materials distributed at diversity training seminars shall carry a prominent notice about:  (a) The right of state employees to hold any personal religious belief they wish with respect to different cultures and lifestyles; and (b) the prohibition against discrimination contained in subsection (2) of this section.

    (5) For purposes of this section, the term "state employee" includes all classified state employees, all state employee managers, and all exempt state employees.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2.  A new section is added to chapter 49.60 RCW to read as follows:

    It is an unfair practice for a state manager or supervisor to discriminate against or make negative comments about a state employee for participation or nonparticipation in diversity training seminars.

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