News

At DCYF, Member Action Turns Staff Assault into Stronger Safety Protocols

Dedicated WFSE members at the Washington Department of Children, Youth and Families show up for kids and families during some of the hardest times in their lives.

2023 Recap, Message from the President

I visited the avalanche crew keeping Stevens Pass safe for drivers. I did a ride along with some of our Department of Corrections members in Mt. Vernon. I drove the Green Machine to Walla Walla. I flew to Medical Lake and met the WFSE heroes who pushed residents in their wheelchairs over a mile to safety when the blaze approached Lakeland Village.

Union Ensures DOT Crew is Warm this Winter

Thanks to union action, a Department of Transportation maintenance crew in Eastern Washington is no longer facing a frigid winter without a critical piece of gear: fleece liners for their winter coats.

Doglio or Strickland: Who Will Fight for Working Families in the South Sound?

Both would bring perspectives that are sorely lacking in Congress. But only one has spent her career improving the lives of working people.

General Government Agreement Reached, Team Recommends Yes Vote

Thursday after 10 p.m., the WFSE General Government Bargaining Team reached a 2021-2023 tentative agreement with the state of Washington that secures a future for 30,000 + state workers and the millions of Washingtonians they serve.

GG members: View the full TA and voting instructions here.

The agreement accomplishes the following:

Legislative & Political Action

No workforce has more at stake in decisions made by elected officials. That is why we care so much about who is elected to go to Olympia to serve in elected office. Volunteer to inform your fellow union members which candidates have earned labor's endorsement for the 2022 Elections — and why.

WFSE Mourns the Loss of Gerry Fidler

Gerry first came to Washington state in 2008 to assist with and learn from WFSE’s Conservative Caucus, a first-of-its-kind working group that had been established by WFSE members in 2005 and quickly achieved bipartisan support for and passage of crucial legislation. With Gerry’s guidance and help with messaging, the Conservative Caucus became a model for other councils, affiliates, and locals and even changed the way AFSCME International viewed and talked about politics.

Help Save Jobs & Services. Register for a People First Workshop.

Join our campaign to educate and mobilize WFSE members and our allies on the need for revenue reform, institutional change, and an investment in public services. Together we can mitigate the economic impact on members and residents and help usher in needed reforms. Register for any online workshop below, and let's speak up together for our jobs, families and communities.

Participants will learn…

Aug 25 Webinar: Finding Well-Being in Difficult Times

Join fellow WFSE members in "Finding Well-Being in Difficult Times," a webinar where you will learn strategies for well-being and stress management and resources available to you via Kaiser Permanente and Regence UMP.

Faced with Crises, WFSE Members Find New Value in the Union

Amidst a renewed movement for racial justice, a global pandemic, and a recession, workers across the country are seeing the benefit of unions more clearly than ever. Conversations with members from across Eastern Washington about these crises show a diversity of opinion on where WFSE can focus its resources to make the greatest impact.

Learn About Washington's Rigged Tax Code

Washington state faces an economic catastrophe of unprecedented scale. Without action, public sector workers like us — the very people who have risked their lives to get us through this pandemic — will be forced to pay the price with cuts to the vital services we provide Washingtonians, cuts to our benefits, and permanent layoffs. This campaign is about choosing a better path forward: putting working People First and asking the super wealthy to pay their fair share.