Department of Transportation v. Marine Employees' Commission

¶1 On July 24, 2009, a Marine Employees’ Commission (MEC) arbitrator issued a decision settling a long-standing grievance between the Washington State Ferries Division of the Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Marine Engineers’ Beneficial Association (MEBA), a union representing certain ferry system employees. As part of the decision, the arbitrator ordered the DOT to pay MEBA’s attorney fees. The DOT petitioned the MEC to reconsider that specific portion of the award, contending that the parties’ collective bargaining agreement (CBA)1 forbade awarding attorney fees; the MEC refused…