WFSE Wins! WFSE Voters Take Down Anti-Worker Initiatives and Elect Pro-Worker Representatives!
Our hard work paid off this year--WFSE voters:
- Took down three anti-worker initiatives, which would have resulted in job loss, income stagnation, and fewer services for Washingtonians
- Elected labor-friendly representatives that will fund our contract and fight for the labor movement in Olympia
Electing worker-friendly representatives is critical in this contract year as they will vote YES or NO on funding the contract we just negotiated.
Our outreach to union siblings was especially important this election. With a looming budget deficit, we must elect labor-focused representatives to protect our futures. Our paychecks, job security, and ability to provide for our families depend on the decisions made by the folks in the Capitol.
Thanks to hours of canvassing, phone calls, and conversations with fellow union members, we helped over 100 WFSE-endorsed candidates win state and national elections!
We said NO to I-2117, I-2109, and I-2124, the billionaire-supported initiatives that would have gutted our paychecks and destroyed public-sector jobs around the state.
Members participated in phone banks every week to reach out to other WFSE siblings around the state and remind them to vote for WFSE-endorsed candidates. We made over 21,000 calls this election season and were joined by candidates from around the state, as well as Governor Inslee!
On the ground, WFSE members joined the Washington State Labor Council for canvassing through their Labor Neighbor series, completing 17 canvassing shifts! We also canvassed for our priority initiatives, logging 18 shifts for the NO to I-2117 campaign!
These results are a reminder that people-powered campaigns are still powerful in today's political landscape. The power of a simple conversation with a coworker can break down barriers and help us fight for a better future--a fairer future for workers across Washington.
Now we get to prepare for the next step in funding our contracts--lobbying our newly-elected legislators! This legislative session is going to be incredibly important, thanks to Washington's projected budget deficit. We need you to come talk to your legislators about why supporting Washington's working families is so important.
Help Us Fund our 2025-27 Raises: Sign Up to Lobby
Click here to RSVP for training for our 2025 Lobby Days! We need all the voices we can get to remind legislators who they're affecting with their decisions!
Want to sign up your local members for lobby days? Download the flyer.
Remember--no workforce has more at stake from decisions made by elected officials!
No Workforce Has More at Stake in these Elections than Public Employees.
Protect Your Paycheck!
As we gear up for this election, the stakes couldn’t be higher. Washington is in flux, with long-term budget cuts, the return to in-person work, grappling with post-pandemic business norms, a looming "silver tsunami" of an aging workforce, and essential public workers facing burnout. The decisions made now will shape our future.
Despite recent wins in our union contracts and in the legislature, we're still feeling the pinch of rising costs. And with initiatives on the ballot that could impact our jobs -- including the repeal of the climate commitment act (I-2117) and capital gains (I-2109) -- our economic security is at risk.
Ballot Measures in the General Election
Read More: Why Saving the Climate Committment Act matters for WFSE Members
Read More: Why Saving the Capital Gains Tax matters for WFSE Members
How Our Members Endorsed a NO Vote
WFSE delegates to our Endorsements Conference voted to oppose the three initiatives below.
- I – 2109: Repealing the Capital Gains Tax
- I – 2117: Repealing the Climate Commitment Act
- I – 2124: Opting out of the WA Cares Act
*The Washington State Labor Council, which includes WFSE and 550,000 other union members in Washington state, is also opposed to these three initiatives.
WFSE's Executive Board -- the 66 members elected to conduct the business of our union -- committed significant resources to combat these billionaire-led initiatives, which would result in job loss for WFSE members and a loss in critical services for the Washingtonians who depend on our work.
WFSE is a key member of two coalitions opposing I – 2109, which would repeal the capital gains tax, and opposing I – 2117, which would repeal the Climate Commitment Act.
Both of these initiatives would drain close to $9 billion from the state's budget and seriously impact our ability to achieve the compensation we need.
It's about staffing, work-life balance, and being able to take care of ourselves and our families.
The folks backing these initiatives -- anti-worker billionaires and large corporations -- already don't pay the same share of their income that we do in taxes, thanks to our upside-down tax code. Now they want to pay even less.
WFSE will be committing resources to educating our members about the impacts these initiatives would have on our jobs, families and communities. We'll make updates to this page so check back as we near election day in November.
2024 Elections: Your Paycheck is at Stake
We are currently negotiating our 2025-2027 union contract. No matter what we win in our contract, it still needs to be funded by the Legislature and signed by the Governor. What we take home in pay ultimately depends on our elected officials signing off on our contract.
We must rally behind our endorsed candidates to safeguard our interests.
Click Here to See Our Union's Endorsed Candidates
With seats up for grabs in various levels of government, we need to ensure a strong pro-worker majority. With enough legislators in either party who don’t support union values, our priorities will stall.
Washington is a union state, and we must keep it that way. Every election matters because, as public employees, there is no other workforce with more at stake when it comes to the decisions made by elected officials.
As public employees, our livelihoods and the communities we serve are on the line. This election is our chance to fight for fair treatment, better wages, and a brighter future. Let’s stand together and elect leaders who have our backs. Our jobs, our dignity, and our future depend on it!
Let's get pro-labor leaders elected:
How WFSE Members Endorse Candidates
Local delegates, executive board members, and members of PEOPLE, our union's political action fund, came together on April 27 to decide which candidates our union endorses in a critical 2024 election season.
Many members were 1st-time attendees to the endorsement conference, which focused on selecting candidates based on their stance toward labor issues.
Click here to see photos from the Endorsement Conference!
No Workforce Has More at Stake
Since no other workforce has more at stake in decisions made by elected officials than us, these discussion-based meetings are vital in helping elect officials who want to fund our contracts, protect our healthcare, and ensure job security.
WFSE officers interviewed candidates on their relationship with labor, both personally and as political figures. The main issues focused on in interviews were salaries and pay raises, job security, working conditions, and workers’ right to bargain. Pro-labor candidates are more likely to receive an endorsement, no matter their party alignment.
“We want friends in the Republican and Democratic caucuses,” said Dennis Eagle, WFSE’s Labor and Political Action Director. He acknowledged that all candidates have a variety of issues that they care about, but WFSE’s endorsement process hinges on labor issues.
Because of this, members making endorsements consider whether a candidate has a labor-loyal, or just labor-friendly, voting history.
How Endorsements are Made
Before endorsements were made official, members were given the opportunity to comment on lobbyist and officer recommendations. Members asked about candidates’ stances on women’s health, treatment of workers, and demeanor in interviews.
If members weren’t satisfied with answers about candidates’ stances on labor or how they have treated workers in the past, they motioned to interview candidates again with certain people present, take no action to endorse, or endorse a different candidate.
During the conference, a candidate with a positive voting history towards labor got a suggested endorsement from WFSE officers and lobbyists. In one instance, DCYF members had personal experience of the candidate being unsupportive of their work and motioned to interview the candidate with a panel of DCYF members.
After any motion, a vote was taken. A 2/3rds majority is needed to successfully move any vote forward, and if that wasn’t achieved, voters were allowed to put forth additional motions. This ensures a democratic process and allows members to voice any concerns they have about candidates.
Want to help choose who our union endorses?
Input from community members all over the state is vital since our members come from communities all over Washington.
If you're a dues-paying WFSE member, join PEOPLE, our union's Political Action Fund.Who WFSE endorses has real implications for workers in every county and community in Washington—sign up today and let your voice be heard!
