Washington

Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin

(115,244 posts) Wed Oct 2, 2024, 12:44 PM Oct 2

GOP legislative staff OK contract as Democratic employees say no

In the first-ever collective bargaining for legislative employees in Washington, Republican staff in the state House and Senate got contracts but their Democratic counterparts did not.

Legislative assistants in the GOP caucuses unanimously approved two-year agreements with pay hikes of 3% on July 1, 2025 and 2% a year later, the same amount offered to other state employee unions.

But Democratic caucus employees in the two chambers rejected proposed contracts, a stinging disappointment as some fought for the 2022 law that cleared the way for them to unionize and negotiate terms and conditions for the workplace.

“I’m pretty frustrated. We want a contract but we want a good contract,” Josie Ellison, a communications specialist with the House Democratic Caucus, said Tuesday. They served on the bargaining team.

https://washingtonstatestandard.com/2024/10/01/gop-legislative-staff-ok-contract-as-democratic-employees-say-no/

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GOP legislative staff OK contract as Democratic employees say no (Original Post) Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin Oct 2 OP

They negotiated collectively, but the votes were done separately ? MichMan Oct 2 #1

MichMan

(13,156 posts)

1. They negotiated collectively, but the votes were done separately ?

Reply to Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin (Original post)

Wed Oct 2, 2024, 12:54 PM

Oct 2

Now what happens?

Under Washington’s law, employees of the Democratic and Republican caucuses in each chamber had to be in separate units unless a majority of each caucus voted to be in the same unit. All four units could, and did, negotiate collectively on economic issues, like wages and benefits, with the employers, which are the chief clerk of the House and secretary of the Senate.

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