WA public service workers to strike for fair contract

50,000 WA state workers to walk out Tuesday

Nearly 50,000 public service workers in Washington state, represented by AFSCME Council 28 (The Washington Federation of State Employees), are set to walk off the job on Tuesday to demand fair wages, safe staffing levels and better working conditions.

OLYMPIA, Wash. - Nearly 50,000 public service workers in Washington state, represented by AFSCME Council 28 (The Washington Federation of State Employees), are set to walk off the job on Tuesday, Sept. 10, at 12 p.m., to demand fair wages, safe staffing levels and better working conditions.

The strike, branded as "Walkout for Washington," will include employees from state agencies, community colleges and universities at 130 worksites across the state.

Contract negotiations between AFSCME Council 28 and the state’s Office of Financial Management (OFM) have been ongoing since April but have seen little progress on key issues such as compensation and staffing. Union leaders argue that insufficient wages and benefits are contributing to a staffing crisis that affects critical public services, including behavioral health, transportation, juvenile rehabilitation and education.

"Nearly 40 percent of the state workforce has turned over in the last eight years due to resignations alone," the union said in a statement. "Workers are demanding fair wages and benefits that will prevent more essential workers from leaving and help recruit more qualified individuals to these critical jobs."

According to AFSCME Council 28, the state has proposed terms that effectively amount to a pay cut for workers' 2025-27 union contracts, despite evidence and personal testimonials presented at the bargaining table. In response, union members have decided to take action, staging walkouts in nearly every major city in Washington, including large-scale demonstrations in Olympia, Seattle, Everett, Bellingham, Tacoma and Spokane.

In Olympia, significant walkouts are expected at the Department of Labor and Industries headquarters, the Department of Ecology and the Department of Children, Youth and Families. In Seattle, workers at the University of Washington’s main campus and Harborview Hospital will participate, while Everett will see coordinated action from employees at DSHS, DCYF, the Department of Transportation and Everett Community College. Similar large gatherings are planned at Western Washington University in Bellingham, Western State Hospital in Lakewood and Lakeland Village and Eastern State Hospital in Spokane.

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AFSCME Council 28 represents more than 50,000 state and public service workers in Washington who play critical roles in maintaining public safety, environmental protection and community support services. The union hopes that this collective action will bring attention to the staffing and compensation issues and help secure a contract that respects and protects the workers and the communities they serve.