Woodinville Fire District Cleared of Racism Charges

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has found no grounds for charges of and current Deputy Fire Chief Mario S. Acosta, according to a report read during a special meeting of the Woodinville Fire & Rescue Board of Commissioners Friday night, Dec. 30.

Interim Fire Chief Mark Chubb, reading from a prepared statement, said that the EEOC had found no grounds for the racism charges filed by Acosta in July 2011 and Daniels in September 2011. The EEOC made its decision Dec. 6.

In addition, a report from an independent investigator hired by the board to research the racism allegation also determined no discrimination laws had been broken. The report, released at Friday’s meeting, did state that actions by the Woodinville Fire & Rescue union, IAFF Local 2950, as a group, “did have the look and feel of an abuse of process and an abuse of power.”

The report, produced by Seattle attorney and former EEOC investigator Claire Cordon, as an example of that abuse of power. However, both Chubb and union leadership stated there were inaccuracies in the report, including a failure to accurately report that union membership had undergone anti-harassment and anti-discrimination training.

Union vice president and president-elect Tony Woods said the local objected to the board even accepting the report because of its inaccuracies and given that it concludes no laws were broken.

“In considering whether to accept this report as the official position of the district, you should know, and take into consideration, that this report contains inaccurate, incomplete and uninformed information that is highly offensive to the Union and its individual members,” Woods read from a prepared statement at the meeting.

The three members of the board that were at the meeting, Tim Osgood, Kevin Coughlin and Clint Olson (Bob Miller and Gerry Vucci could not attend) said no action would be taken on the report. The consensus of the board was to continue moving forward in repairing the contentious relationship between management and labor.