THE HONORABLE THERESA B. DOYLE SUPERIOR COURT OF WASHINGTON IN AND FOR KING COUNTY 0 TEAMSTERS LOCAL UNION NO., a Washington labor organization, v. Plaintiff, STATE OF WASHINGTON (DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS) and SECRETARY OF CORRECTIONS BERNARD WARNER, in his official capacity, Defendants. CASE NO. --- SEA COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES 0 Comes now the Plaintiff, Teamsters Local Union No., and by way of complaint, alleges as follows: I. NATURE OF ACTION. Plaintiff Teamsters Local Union No. ( Local ) brings this action for money damages, statutory penalties and other relief for wage law violations on behalf of certain of its members who are employed by the Washington State Department of Corrections ( DOC ).. Local alleges herein violations of Washington s Minimum Wage Act ( MWA ), RCW. and Wage Rebate Act ( WRA ), RCW.. COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES - Case No. --- SEA WEST MERCER ST., SUITE 00 SEATTLE, WA Office (0) - / Fax (0) -
II. JURISDICTION AND VENUE. The Superior Court of Washington has jurisdiction over Plaintiff s claims 0 0 pursuant to RCW.0.00.. Venue in King County is appropriate pursuant to RCW..00(). III. PARTIES. Local is a labor organization with its primary offices located in King County, Washington.. Local is the exclusive certified bargaining representative of approximately,000 persons employed by DOC. Local s members at the DOC are employees for the purposes of the MWA and WRA.. Local brings this action in its associational capacity on behalf of certain of its members whom it represents at the DOC.. Defendant, State of Washington ( the State ), is the employer of the employees represented by Local pursuant to the provisions of RCW.0. It operates through one or more Departments including, but not limited to, the DOC. Defendant is an employer for purposes of the MWA and WRA.. Defendant, Secretary of Corrections Bernard Warner, is the Secretary of the Department of Corrections, State of Washington, is the chief executive office of that entity, and is named in that capacity only. IV. FACTUAL ALLEGATIONS. DOC is responsible for administering adult corrections programs operated by the State of Washington. This includes state correctional institutions and programs for offenders COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES - Case No. --- SEA WEST MERCER ST., SUITE 00 SEATTLE, WA Office (0) - / Fax (0) -
0 0 supervised in the community. DOC employs approximately,000 men and women and has a current biennial operating budget of $. billion.. The State and Local are parties to a collective bargaining agreement dated June, 0 through June 0, 0 ( the CBA ). Prior to the period of time covered by that agreement, the State and Local were parties to a collective bargaining agreement dated June, 0 through June 0, 0 ( the predecessor CBA ).. DOC employees represented by Local who are or were employed under the terms of the CBA or the predecessor CBA normally are required to take unpaid meal periods of a minimum of thirty (0) minutes if they work more than five () consecutive hours. CBA/Predecessor CBA, Article, Section.(B).. The predecessor CBA provided that when such employees worked a double shift, the Employer would not require said employees to take an unpaid meal period during the second shift. Predecessor CBA, Article, Section.(D). The current CBA provides that, when such employees work a double shift, the Employer will not require the employee to take an unpaid meal period during the additional shift. CBA, Article, Section.(D).. During the three years preceding the date of the filing of this lawsuit, and thereafter, the State has failed and/or refused to permit employees who work a double shift to exercise their contract right, set forth in the CBA and predecessor CBA as described above, to not take an unpaid meal period during their second or additional shifts. The State has, instead, required employees to take an unpaid meal period during their second shift.. By so acting, the State has deprived Local s members of thirty (0) minutes worth of compensation for each work shift on which such failure or refusal occurred. COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES - Case No. --- SEA WEST MERCER ST., SUITE 00 SEATTLE, WA Office (0) - / Fax (0) -
0 0. In depriving Local s members of the opportunity to decline to take an unpaid meal period during the second or additional shift of a double shift, the State acted willfully and with the intent of depriving Local s members of the requisite regular and/or overtime compensation. V. ALLEGATIONS RELATED TO LOCAL S STANDING TO BRING THIS LAWSUIT. Local is acting in this suit on behalf of its members who were employed by the DOC as corrections officers at any time during the three years preceding the date of the filing of this lawsuit up until such time as DOC ceases to commit the violations of law complained of herein.. Local has standing to bring this suit because (a) its members at the DOC, as described above, would otherwise have standing in their own right, (b) ensuring that its members at the DOC are properly compensated for the services they perform is germane to the purpose and goals of Local, and (c) none of the claims asserted require the participation of the individual employees on whose behalf Local is bringing this suit. VI. FIRST CAUSE OF ACTION - WILLFUL WITHHOLDING OF WAGES IN VIOLATION OF RCW.. Plaintiff restates and realleges the allegations set forth in paragraphs. through. above as if fully set forth herein.. Defendants failure to permit Local s members to exercise their contract right to not take an unpaid meal period during the second or additional shift of a double shift resulted in Defendants paying those members a lower wage than the wage Defendants were obligated to pay Local s members by virtue of the CBA and/or the predecessor CBA, and thus violated RCW..00(). COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES - Case No. --- SEA WEST MERCER ST., SUITE 00 SEATTLE, WA Office (0) - / Fax (0) -
0 0. As a direct and proximate result of the foregoing, Local s members have suffered and continue to suffer loss of compensation in amounts as will be proven at trial.. In addition, Plaintiff is entitled to recover judgment on behalf of its members for twice the amount of wages improperly withheld as exemplary damages pursuant to RCW..00. VII.. above. SECOND CAUSE OF ACTION FAILURE TO PAY OVERTIME WAGES IN VIOLATION OF THE WASHINGTON STATE MINIMUM WAGE ACT, RCW... Plaintiff restates and realleges the allegations set forth in paragraphs. through. As to those weeks in which Local s members who were deprived of their contract right to not take an unpaid meal period during the second or additional shift of a double shift worked forty or more hours for Defendants, Defendants failed to pay those members oneand-one-half times their regular rate of pay for the time period during which those members should have been given the opportunity to work, in violation of RCW..0.. As a result of defendant s acts and omissions, Local s members have been damaged in amounts as will be proven at trial. VIII. REQUEST FOR RELIEF WHEREFORE, plaintiff requests that this Court grant the following relief: A. Damages for lost wages in amounts to be proven at trial; B. Exemplary damages in amounts equal to double the wages due to Local s members, pursuant to RCW..00; C. Attorneys fees and costs pursuant to RCW..00 and RCW..00; D. Prejudgment interest; and COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES - Case No. --- SEA WEST MERCER ST., SUITE 00 SEATTLE, WA Office (0) - / Fax (0) -
E. Such other and further relief as the Court deems just and proper. 0 DATED this th day of September, 0. s/dmitri Iglitzin Dmitri Iglitzin, WSBA # Schwerin Campbell Barnard Iglitzin & Lavitt LLP W Mercer St, Suite 00 Seattle, WA (0) -00 (0) -0 Iglitzin@workerlaw.com s/spencer Thal Spencer Nathan Thal, WSBA # 00 Teamsters Local Union No. Interurban Avenue South, Suite 0 Tukwila, WA (0) -0 Attorneys for Teamsters Local Union No. 0 COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES - Case No. --- SEA WEST MERCER ST., SUITE 00 SEATTLE, WA Office (0) - / Fax (0) -