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Newspaper Archive of
Shelton Mason County Journal
Shelton, Washington
August 30, 2012     Shelton Mason County Journal
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August 30, 2012
 
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[J../ ?:;.) :~! ~:{:!~ !::T ; ,i.;.d,,l i, i .... i|,,, tlh,d,t,i,l Thursday, Aug. 30, 2012 week 35 - The Voice of Mason County since 1886 -- PubliShed for Mason County and Nan Stricklin of Shelton -- $1 Court: County acted improperly Residents push county to act on decision By NATALIE JOHNSON natalie@masoncounty.com For more than three years, Mason County has been battling a complaint from the Teamsters Local 252 union alleging that the county refused to bargain in good faith, violating RCW 41.56.140(4). This summer, a Thurston County judge upheld thd complaint, and concluded that the Mason County Board of Commissioners en- gaged in unfair bargaining practices when it rejected a contract that had been signed by the union in April 2009. During the commission's regular meeting on Tuesday evening, Annette McGee, Mason County resident and former county commissmn- er, asked the commission- ers what they planned to do about the recent decision. "I was blown away lit- erally when all this came down," she said. "There's questions. The public needs to be informed. It can't be hidden any longer." The Teamsters filed their complaint on April 27, 2009, on behalf of four bargaining units it represents among county staff, including gen- eral services, appraisers, probation services and ju- venile detention. The union filed a fifth complaint on behalf of the International Union of Operating Engi- neers, Local 302, which rep- resented public works em- ployees. The matter came be- fore hearing examiner Joel Greene, who found that the county did in fact violate its obligation to bargain in good faith when the commission rejected the negotiated con- tracts. The counW appealed the decision to the Public Em- ployment Relations Com- mission (PERC), which af- firmed the hearings exam- iner's opinion in October 2011. The PERC decision states that then county Human Re- sources Manager T.J. Mar- tin led the union to believe that the contracts would be approved by the county com- mission. "...the Examiner found that at the time the employ- er was making its economic proposals, the employer was aware of its economic situation but continued to assure the union that the agreements would be rati- fied," the PERC decision states. "Thus, according to the Examiner, the employer was not permitted to with- draw from its proposals. We agree." The opinion stated that the county could not with- draw from a negotiated contract due to monetary concerns at the beginning of the recession because the commission and county staff knew about its financial sit- uation during bargaining. The contracts appeared on the commission's agenda on April 7, 2009, and were See County on page A-8 8 IIIIU! !l!!ll!!!U!l1112 Concern over service, conduct prompt fire district merger petition i ~i i" By NATALIEJOHNSON Mike DeCapua and Trevor Sever- ........ :: natalie@masoncou~ty.com once, residents of Mason County Fire District 9 have circulated a letter this month asking residents of Fire District Mason County's 16 fire districts often 9 to approve a merger of part of the dis- work together to provide fire protection trict with Mason County. Fire District 6. and emergency medical services to resi- dents of the county See erger on page Grant Wolfkill, left, is presented with a certificate of recognition from the U.S. Marines, by Captain to mark 50 years since he was released from a communist Pathet Lao prison in Laos in 1962. Journa phOtO by Natalie Johnson Darren Beatty, Medal of Honor recipient celebrates 50 years as a free man By NATALIE JOHNSON natalie@masoncounty.com Grant Wolfkill has been through a terrible ordeal un- imaginable to most people, but he doesn't dwell on it. On Aug. 18, Wolfldll's friends and family celebrated his 50 years of freedom after being captured and held in a Laotian prison for 15 months in the early 1960s. While it was unlucky to be captured, he fo- cuses on being lucky to be alive. On May 15, 1961, Wolfkill, an NBC news cameraman stationed in Southeast Asia, caught a ride on a helicopter in an effort to "I've been very lucky in my aim troops breaking a cease-fire agreement in Laos. life," the Shelton resident The helicopter, a privately owned craft con- said. tracted with U.S. forces in the area, crashed due to mechanical failure, stranding Wolfkill and two other Americans -- Edward Shore, the helicopter's pilot, and John McMorrow, the mechanic. Not long after the crash, the three men were captured by communist Pother Lao fore- es. Over the next 15 months, they were held as prisoners Of war in several makeshift prisons, each seemingly worse than the last. Wolfkill published his account of his time as a Pathet Lao prisoner in his book, "Reported to See Freedom on page A-8 Waste spill causes concern Landlord~tenant issue leads tO county order By NATALIE JOHNSON nataIie@mas°nc°u nty'c°m Hood Canal boasts" some of the best shellfish beaches and scenic vacation destinations the North- west has to offer, but in the past several years bacteria problems and a low dissolved oxygen con- tent has left environmentalists struggling to address the damage. This summer, an aging septing system has been leaking raw sew- age into a drainage ditch on the westbound side of State Route 106, which flows into Hood Canal. At the root of that leak is a bit- ter landlord/tenant dispute at the Union Bay Cabins. "This used to be the cutest lit- tle place three months ago," said tenant David Dunkum. Now the septic system is over- See Spill on page A-7 Water from a the septic system serving the Union Bay Cabins, on State Route 106 overflows down the driveway for the cabins. The Mason County Department of Public Health and Human Services has issued an order that the septic system must be repaired by this week or the property must be vacated. Journal photo by Natalie Johnson