DECISIONS

Washington State Patrol, Decision 12653 (PECB, 2017)

STATE OF WASHINGTON

BEFORE THE PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS COMMISSION

Daniel Hall, Secretary/Treasurer, for the Washington State Patrol Lieutenants Association.

Franklin Plaistowe, Representative, for the Washington State Patrol.

On December 12, 2016, the Washington State Patrol Lieutenants Association (union) filed a unit clarification petition under WAC 391-35-085 asking that the Commission amend an existing bargaining unit certification to reflect a change in the name of the certified bargaining representative.  The request for amendment is granted.

The union represents a bargaining unit of lieutenants and captains working for the Washington State Patrol.  When the bargaining unit was originally established in 1994, it included just the patrol officers holding the rank of lieutenant.  In 2003, the bargaining unit was clarified to include the patrol officers holding the rank of captain.  State – Washington State Patrol, Decision 8236 (PECB, 2003).  Although captains have been included in the bargaining unit since 2003, the union continued to call itself the Washington State Patrol Lieutenants Association.

The union has changed its name to the Washington State Patrol Lieutenants and Captains Association to reflect the types of employees currently included in the bargaining unit.  The petition does not alter the configuration of the bargaining unit and that no question concerning representation is raised by the petition.

The Commission’s rules provide a process for an organization to petition for an amendment to an existing certification under WAC 391-35-085, which states:

A party may file a petition to amend an existing certification, and the executive director may amend the certification, provided that the purpose of the amendment is to reflect changed circumstances such as the name of the labor organization or the name of an employer, and the bargaining unit is not affected by the change and there is no question concerning representation.

Here, the union’s petition merely seeks to amend the existing certification to reflect that the union’s name accurately reflects the job duties being performed by the bargaining unit.  The bargaining unit’s structure has not been altered, and no question concerning representation exists.

NOW, THEREFORE, it is

ORDERED

1.                  The bargaining unit certified as appropriate in State – Washington State Patrol, Decision 8236 (PECB, 2003) amended to reflect that the certified bargaining representative has changed its name to the Washington State Patrol Lieutenants and Captains Association.

2.                  The amendment to the certification issued in this proceeding does not give rise to a new “certification bar” year under RCW 41.56.070 or WAC 391-25-030(2).

ISSUED at Olympia, Washington, this  20th  day of January, 2017.

PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS COMMISSION

MICHAEL P. SELLARS, Executive Director

This order will be the final order of the

agency unless a notice of appeal is filed

with the Commission under WAC 391-35-210.