Mandatory Subjects of Bargaining

The Labor Relations Office in CWU’s Human Resources Department handles contract administration including:

  • Contract Negotiations
  • Contract Interpretation and Consultation
  • Grievance Administration
  • Management Training
  • Labor/Management Partnership Building and Strategizing

MANDATORY subjects of bargaining include matters that directly impact wages, hours, and working conditions as described in RCW 41.56.030(4). Examples: Wages, Layoff, Holidays.

PERMISSIVE subjects are those matters considered remote from wages, hours, and working conditions, not directly related to the work.  These subjects include topics which are considered the prerogatives of employers or unions. The parties may agree to bargain over these but are not required to by law and can refuse to discuss them without fear of an unfair labor practice charge.  Examples: Supervisor’s conditions of employment, how stewards are elected,  board of trustees membership.

PROHIBITED [or illegal] subjects are those matters where an agreement between employer and union would violate a statute or contravene a court decision. Examples: Closed shop provisions, discrimination based on race.

CWU currently has three unions; Public School Employees of Washington (PSE), Washington Federation of State Employees (WFSE), and United Faculty of Central (UFC).

 

Mandatory Subjects Notice Resources
 

Typical Documents and Information
to Includein your email to HR
Labor Relation		 Typical Documents and Information to Include in your email to HR Labor Relations
Reallocation out of the Bargaining Unit 
  • Current position description 
  • New draft position description 
  • Organizational chart 
  • Bargaining unit designation change detail 
  • Where will the bargaining unit work go? 
  • Timeline and implementation date 
Office Move 
  • Organizational chart (with repped and non-repped positions labeled) 
  • Floor plan for new space 
  • How workstations will be assigned 
  • Current floor plan 
  • Distance between current and new office 
  • Timeline and implementation date 
Reorganization 
  • Organizational charts – current and proposed (with repped and non-repped positions labeled) 
  • Reasons for the change 
  • Current and proposed position descriptions, if duties are changing 
  • Timeline and implementation date 

Layoff 
  • Organizational chart (with repped and non-repped positions labeled) 
  • Thorough description of reasons for layoff 
  • Explanation of what happens to the work previously performed by eliminated positions 
  • Timeline and implementation date 

Permanent Employer-Initiated Schedule Change
  • Old schedule 
  • New schedule 
  • Reason for the change 
  • Timeline and implementation date 

Policy Implementation or Update 
  • New policy in “Track Changes” format 
  • Old policy 
  • Reasons for policy change 
  • Timeline and implementation date 

Security Cameras Installation 
  • Screenshots of camera views and map with camera locations shown 
  • Reasons cameras are needed/desired 
  • Whether they record audio 
  • How long recordings are stored and where 
  • Who has access to recordings 
  • When will recordings be viewed 
  • Timeline and implementation date 

Contracting Out 

(Also: the Competitive Contracting notice to employees required by RCW 41.06.142) 
  • Thorough description of scope of work 
  • Reasons why the agency intends to contract 
  • Information about how work has been completed in the past (i.e. customarily and historically b.u. work, mixed work, always contracted) 
  • If, when and how knowledge transfer/training will occur for b.u. staff 
  • Timeline for work to be completed 
Was this helpful?
0 reviews
Print Article