State worker-rights bill shelved because of "legal and ethical questions"

OLYMPIA — Gov. Chris Gregoire and the Democratic leadership in the House and Senate announced this morning that they were killing worker-rights legislation because of an e-mail that linked action on the bill to campaign contributions.

The e-mail raises "serious legal and ethical questions," the Democratic leaders said in a joint statement, which added that the issue was referred to the Washington State Patrol for investigation.

A spokesman for Senate Democrats said the case raised the question of interest groups providing contributions in exchange for legislation, and that legislative leaders are sending a clear message that the Legislature is not for sale.

Lawmakers would not release the e-mail, but a copy was obtained by The Seattle Times. It apparently was from a staff member of the Washington State Labor Council to several members of labor organizations as well as a small number of state lawmakers.

It reads in part: "Brothers and Sisters, Just a quick update on where we are on the Worker Privacy Act:

• "Great leadership call yesterday where folks agreed that we would push for passage in the House this week and then call for a union president meeting with the Governor and the Majority Leader of the Senate to move the bill through the rest of the process.

• "Union leaders would send a message to the State Democratic party and to the Truman and Roosevelt funds from the House and Senate that 'not another dime from labor' until the Governor signs the Worker Privacy Act."

The legislation would have prohibited companies from requiring employees to attend meetings or participate in activities related to political or religious matters, including labor issues.

The measures are vigorously supported by organized labor, and equally opposed by business including Boeing and the Washington Round Table, an organization of corporate executives.

Knowledgeable sources who have read the e-mail confirmed that it came from the Washington State Labor Council. All calls to the group were referred to its president, Rick Bender. He could not be reach for comment.

However, Bender e-mailed a statement to the news media saying: "We regret the incident. It was a result of frustration with the Legislature's failure to protect workers' rights in the workplace. Our job is to always protect workers' rights. We do not believe that any law has been violated and we have no additional comments until we know where this will go."

Kathy Cummings, a spokewoman for the council, would not elaborate or define what the group meant by "the incident"

The joint statement by Gregoire, Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown and House Speaker Frank Chopp said they were "no longer considering action" on measures in the House and Senate because of "an e-mail linking potential action on the bill to campaign contributions."

Brown sent out an additional statement saying "there are various stakeholders with interests for and against almost any proposal that we would consider. Our job as lawmakers is to hear these proposals and,... ultimately, bring them forward when they align with our overall policy objectives.

"But we have to draw the line between this normal process and any attempt by any stakeholder to influence us on a given proposal by threatening to give or withhold contributions to our campaigns as political candidates."

Senate Bill 5446, and House Bill 1528, known as "the Worker Privacy Act," also would have required an employer to post a notice of employee rights in a conspicuous place accessible to the employees at the employer's place of business. Both proposals also would authorize employees whose rights have been violated to bring a civil-court action against their employer.

"Immediately upon becoming aware of an e-mail linking potential action on the bill to campaign contributions, bringing the bill forward was no longer an option," the joint statement from the Democratic leaders said. "The e-mail raises serious legal and ethical questions."

Business and labor have been fighting over the worker-rights legislation for years. Similar proposals have been introduced repeatedly in past legislative sessions.

This session, neither bill has passed the House or Senate. The proposals would have to pass by 5 p.m. Thursday to have a chance this session.

Sgt. Freddy Williams with the Washington State Patrol confirmed they have received a request to look into potential criminal allegations surrounding communications related to the legislation.

Here are excerpts from a timeline released by Chopp of what led lawmakers to kill the bills:

3:50 p.m. Tuesday — Speaker is shown the e-mail in Senate majority leader's office.

3:55 p.m. — Speaker returns to office and immediately seeks consultation with house counsel on ethical and legal issues. A decision made to halt all consideration and communication on HB 1528.

4:30 p.m. — Senior staff and house counsel meet and read e-mail and analyzed ethical and legal issues.

6:45 p.m. — Speaker meets with leadership. Senior staff and House counsel brief leadership on incident and initial analysis. The decision made to immediately halt all consideration and communication on HB 1528 is confirmed.

9 p.m. — Speaker meets with Senate majority leader and governor. The decision is confirmed to immediately halt all consideration and communication on HB 1528 and SB 5446 and to refer the incident to the Thurston County Sheriff's Department.

There's also a joint agreement to suspend all contact with stakeholder representatives on the matter.

9:30 p.m. — Thurston County Sheriff Kimball refers matter to Washington State Patrol Chief John Batiste.

9:45 p.m. — Chief Batiste instructs legislative and executive branches to not distribute the e-mail because "the matter is under investigation."

Andrew Garber: 360-236-8268 or agarber@seattletimes.com

Jennifer Sullivan: 360-236-8267 or jensullivan@seattletimes.com