[atlas:bill]

AN ACT Relating to University of Washington employees; amending RCW 41.06.152 and 41.56.201; and creating a new section.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. In 1993, the legislature authorized employees of institutions of higher education to exercise an option to be governed under the public employees' collective bargaining act, chapter 41.56 RCW, rather than the state civil service law, chapter 41.06 RCW. Currently, some University of Washington employees are governed by chapter 41.56 RCW, while others with the identical classifications are governed by chapter 41.06 RCW.

Legislation was adopted in 1996 to allow salary adjustments and readjustments for groups of state employees covered under the state civil service law. These adjustments allow the Washington personnel resources board to address recruitment and retention issues, correct salary compression or inversion problems, recognize increased duties and responsibilities, and correct salary inequities. The law as passed did not recognize employees who had exercised their option to bargain collectively under chapter 41.56 RCW.

The purpose of this act is to apply any salary adjustments made under RCW 41.06.152(2) for employees subject to chapter 41.06 RCW to employees of institutions of higher education who are in identical or substantially similar classifications and who have elected to be governed under chapter 41.56 RCW. Inclusion of these employees in any such salary adjustments would help achieve the desired result of easing recruitment and retention problems.

Sec. 2. RCW 41.06.152 and 1999 c 309 s 914 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) The board shall adopt only those job classification revisions, class studies, and salary adjustments under RCW 41.06.150(15) that:

(a) Are due to documented recruitment and retention difficulties, salary compression or inversion, increased duties and responsibilities, or inequities. For these purposes, inequities are defined as similar work assigned to different job classes with a salary disparity greater than 7.5 percent; and

(b) Are such that the office of financial management has reviewed the agency's fiscal impact statement and has concurred that the agency can absorb the biennialized cost of the reclassification, class study, or salary adjustment within the agency's current authorized level of funding for the current fiscal biennium and subsequent fiscal biennia.

(2) In addition to reclassifications, class studies, and salary adjustments under subsection (1)(b) of this section, the board may approve other reclassifications, class studies, and salary adjustments that meet the requirements of subsection (1)(a) of this section and have been approved under the procedures established under this subsection.

Before the department of personnel's biennial budget request is due to the office of financial management, the board shall prioritize requests for reclassifications, class studies, and salary adjustments for the next fiscal biennium. The board shall prioritize according to such criteria as are developed by the board consistent with RCW 41.06.150(15)(a).

The board shall submit the prioritized list to the governor's office and the fiscal committees of the house of representatives and senate at the same time the department of personnel's biennial budget request is submitted. The office of financial management shall review the biennial cost of each proposed salary adjustment on the board's prioritized list.

In the biennial appropriations acts, the legislature may establish a level of funding, from the state general fund and other accounts, to be applied by the board to the prioritized list. Upon enactment of the appropriations act, the board may approve reclassifications, class studies, and salary adjustments only to the extent that the total cost does not exceed the level of funding established in the appropriations acts and the board's actions are consistent with the priorities established in the list. The legislature may also specify or otherwise limit in the appropriations act the implementation dates for actions approved by the board under this section.

(3) When the board develops its priority list in the 1999-2001 biennium, for increases proposed for funding in the 2001-2003 biennium, the board shall give top priority to proposed increases to address documented recruitment and retention increases, and shall give lowest priority to proposed increases to recognize increased duties and responsibilities. When the board submits its prioritized list for the 2001-2003 biennium, the board shall also provide: A comparison of any differences between the salary increases recommended by the department of personnel staff and those adopted by the board; a review of any salary compression, inversion, or inequities that would result from implementing a recommended increase; and a complete description of the information relied upon by the board in adopting its proposals and priorities.

(4) This section applies to employees of institutions of higher education who are in identical or substantially similar classifications represented by an exclusive bargaining representative that has exercised its option under RCW 41.56.201 to have its relationship and obligations governed by chapter 41.56 RCW. Such classifications shall be treated in a manner identical to classifications under this chapter and shall be included in all budget requests submitted under this chapter.

(5) This section does not apply to the higher education hospital special pay plan or to any adjustments to the classification plan under RCW 41.06.150(15) that are due to emergent conditions. Emergent conditions are defined as emergency conditions requiring the establishment of positions necessary for the preservation of the public health, safety, or general welfare.

Sec. 3. RCW 41.56.201 and 2000 c 19 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) At any time after July 1, 1993, an institution of higher education and the exclusive bargaining representative of a bargaining unit of employees classified under chapter 28B.16 or 41.06 RCW as appropriate may exercise their option to have their relationship and corresponding obligations governed entirely by the provisions of this chapter by complying with the following:

(a) The parties will file notice of the parties' intent to be so governed, subject to the mutual adoption of a collective bargaining agreement permitted by this section recognizing the notice of intent. The parties shall provide the notice to the Washington personnel resources board or its successor and the commission;

(b) During the negotiation of an initial contract between the parties under this chapter, the parties' scope of bargaining shall be governed by this chapter and any disputes arising out of the collective bargaining rights and obligations under this subsection shall be determined by the commission. If the commission finds that the parties are at impasse, the notice filed under (a) of this subsection shall be void and have no effect; and

(c) On the first day of the month following the month during which the institution of higher education and the exclusive bargaining representative provide notice to the Washington personnel resources board or its successor and the commission that they have executed an initial collective bargaining agreement recognizing the notice of intent filed under (a) of this subsection, chapter 28B.16 or 41.06 RCW as appropriate shall cease to apply to all employees in the bargaining unit covered by the agreement.

(2) All collective bargaining rights and obligations concerning relations between an institution of higher education and the exclusive bargaining representative of its employees who have agreed to exercise the option permitted by this section shall be determined under this chapter, subject to the following:

(a) The commission shall recognize, in its current form, the bargaining unit as certified by the Washington personnel resources board or its successor. For purposes of determining bargaining unit status, positions meeting the criteria established under RCW 41.06.070 or its successor shall be excluded from coverage under this chapter. An employer may exclude such positions from a bargaining unit at any time the position meets the criteria established under RCW 41.06.070 or its successor. The limitations on collective bargaining contained in RCW 41.56.100 shall not apply to that bargaining unit.

(b) If, on the date of filing the notice under subsection (1)(a) of this section, there is a union shop authorized for the bargaining unit under rules adopted by the Washington personnel resources board or its successor, the union shop requirement shall continue in effect for the bargaining unit and shall be deemed incorporated into the collective bargaining agreement applicable to the bargaining unit.

(i) Salary increases shall continue to be appropriated by the legislature. The exclusive bargaining representative shall meet before a legislative session with the governor or governor's designee and the representative of the institution of higher education concerning the total dollar amount for salary increases and health care contributions that will be contained in the appropriations proposed by the governor under RCW 43.88.060;

(ii) The collective bargaining agreements may provide for salary increases from local efficiency savings that are different from or that exceed the amount or percentage for salary increases provided by the legislature in the omnibus appropriations act for the institution of higher education or allocated to the board of trustees by the state board for community and technical colleges, but the base for salary increases provided by the legislature under (c)(i) of this subsection shall include only those amounts appropriated by the legislature, and the base shall not include any additional salary increases provided under this subsection (2)(c)(ii);

(iii) Any provisions of the collective bargaining agreements pertaining to salary increases provided under (c)(i) of this subsection shall be subject to modification by the legislature. If any provision of a salary increase provided under (c)(i) of this subsection is changed by subsequent modification of the appropriations act by the legislature, both parties shall immediately enter into collective bargaining for the sole purpose of arriving at a mutually agreed upon replacement for the modified provision;

(iv) Any and all funding increases adopted under RCW 41.06.152(2) shall also apply to the employees who are in identical or substantially similar classifications under the collective bargaining unit.

(3) Nothing in this section may be construed to permit an institution of higher education to bargain collectively with an exclusive bargaining representative concerning any matter covered by: (a) Chapter 41.05 RCW, except for the related cost or dollar contributions or additional or supplemental benefits as permitted by chapter 492, Laws of 1993; or (b) chapter 41.32 or 41.40 RCW.