Yesterday, we presented our compensation proposal to the state for our 2025-2027 union contract.
To get to this point has been a massive undertaking.
Thousands of WFSE members across the state sent in contract proposals for a period of two years. They identified issues with their pay, with recruitment and retention, with not being able to afford a house or to live in the communities we serve.
For the last month, your bargaining team has performed extensive research to determine which of these contract proposals were within our scope of bargaining, how much we should be asking for, and what our argument for them should be at the negotiating table.
We looked at everything –vacancy and turnover rates, pay at comparable jobs in the private sector, instances of wage compression, safety issues, inequity between similar job classes, historical trends, and much more.
Our Compensation Proposal
Our proposal includes a significant general wage increase for every employee we represent as well as targeted wage increases for hundreds of job classes.
We cannot share exact details of what is in our proposal at this stage, and not all our proposals will be accepted by the employer. If you are a WFSE member you will have the opportunity to review all the details of the tentative contract and vote ‘yes’ or ‘no’ on it before it is signed.
Not a WFSE member? You can take care of your membership right here.
We can say that some of the most significant pay disparities are in the state’s administrative support and trades job classifications. Our bargaining team endorsed two campaigns for these job classes, which are run by WFSE members who work in trades and admin support.
Support Staff Support Us All Campaign
One of our sayings here at WFSE is “We Make Washington Happen.” It’s true, but to a unique degree it’s true of our union siblings who work in our support staff positions. Support staff support us all.
Pay Trades Campaign
Our union siblings in trade jobs at Parks, WSDOT, DSHS, DES and elsewhere do work that can be dangerous, and it’s made exponentially more dangerous when you’re understaffed. Due to the staffing crisis in our trades, our trades members have pushed for an increase over multiple contract cycles but the employer has failed to take action.
You can help them over the finish line and support the #PayTrades campaign here.
How You Can Help Us Win
We want to bring management over to our side on as many of our compensation proposals as possible. Our strength at the bargaining table comes from your numbers.
We know what it feels like— the highs and lows, from day to day and year to year—to be a public service employee working for the State of Washington.
Staffing has not kept up with population growth. Many of us cannot afford to live where we work, even without factoring in childcare, groceries, utilities, and more. Coworkers leave for better pay, which means more work and more turnover.
But we also love our work. We do this because our jobs have real impacts in our communities and for our state. We see what good we could do with adequate staffing levels and competitive pay.
Does management understand?
But does management? Do the agency heads and the state HR team who we’re negotiating with understand?
We can’t say for sure, but yesterday we painted them an incredibly clear picture.
That picture was made possible by you—by every member who told us what we should pursue at the negotiating table, who’s going to worksite events, sending in pictures and quotes, and getting their co-workers involved.
We need you to stay loud in the worksites.
We have events kicking off throughout July, so check out our Events calendar, go to your local meetings, and attend worksite events in your area.
If you’re not a member, you can join here and support us in our contract fight. You’ll also have the opportunity to participate in the ratification of our contract later this summer.
In solidarity,
Your General Government Bargaining Team
Use the tools below to get involved!
To win the best possible contract, we need our members to be engaged, informed, and loud!
- Want to share this update and others? Use the bargaining updates webpage
- Bargaining Survey due 6/30: Click here to rank the issues most important to you
- Wear Green on Your Negotiation Dates! 4/29, 5/13, 5/29, 6/12, 6/25, 7/8, 7/22, 8/19, 8/26, 9/9, 9/12, and 9/19
Visit our 2025-2027 Contract Negotiations landing page to learn about how negotiations work, and download social media graphics, flyers, and posters to support your bargaining team.
Use Hashtag #UnitedforWashington to post about our contract campaign and follow all the action on our social media channels!