Filed Washington State Court of Appeals Division Two January 11, 2022 IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON DIVISION II TAMARA T. ROBERSON, No. 55294-9-II Appellant, v. CLOVER PARK TECHNICAL COLLEGE, UNPUBLISHED OPINION Respondent. WORSWICK, J. — Tamara Roberson appeals the trial court’s order dismissing her lawsuit against Clover Park Technical College (Clover Park) for failure to state a claim for which relief may be granted. She argues that Clover Park violated her rights under the collective bargaining agreement (CBA) by (1) terminating her employment. She also argues Clover Park (2) violated RCW 49.44.170 by misclassifying her employment, (3) violated RCW 41.56.080 and RCW 41.56.140 by restraining her ability to file a grievance, (4) violated her right to hold employment under RCW 49.60.030(1)(a), and (5) violated her reversion rights under RCW 41.06.070(5)(a). Because Roberson’s complaint contained no claim for which the trial court could grant relief, we affirm the trial court’s order. FACTS Roberson was employed at Tacoma Community College (TCC) as a Program Assistant. Her position was covered by the civil service laws,1 and she was a unionized employee 1 Ch. 41.06 RCW. No. 55294-9-II represented by the Washington Federation of State Employees Higher Education Community College Coalition. She resigned on August 30, 2018. Roberson then started her employment as an Assessment and Outcomes Specialist at Clover Park on September 4. When she started her new job, Roberson transferred sick leave, vacation leave, and other personal leave from TCC to Clover Park. Roberson’s position at Clover Park was a non-civil service covered position. Instead, her new position was covered by a CBA between Clover Park and the Clover Park Federation of Classified Employees Local 4789. The CBA provided that Roberson was to serve a six-month probationary period at Clover Park during which time Clover Park was allowed to terminate Roberson at its discretion and without cause. Clover Park terminated Roberson on October 23, before the end of her probationary period, citing performance issues. Roberson asked TCC to allow her to revert back to her previous, civil service-covered position on February 13, 2019. TCC denied Roberson’s request. Roberson appealed TCC’s decision to the Personnel Resources Board (PRB), a state agency responsible for adjudicating appeals filed by civil service employees. RCW 41.06.110. The PRB dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction. It reasoned that because Roberson had quit her civil service job at TCC, she was ineligible for reversion under the civil service rules. Roberson appealed the PRB’s decision to Pierce County Superior Court, which granted a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim upon which relief may be granted. Roberson did not appeal this denial of her reversion. Roberson also filed a complaint with the Public Employment Relations Commission (PERC) in November 2018, claiming that Clover Park committed unfair labor practices when it failed to allow her to file a grievance concerning her dismissal. PERC dismissed Roberson’s 2 No. 55294-9-II claim noting that “the amended complaint lacks necessary facts to state causes of action.” Br. …
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