Our WPEA members and all classified staff, in conjunction with the faculty union members, at Clark College are doing more for their community.  They collected supplies to donate to local area hospitals and food banks. These donations provide not only much supplies but hope that once we all come together - while staying apart - we can overcome this.  

Dear WPEA Members: 
 
Let me begin by sincerely thanking you—and all our members—for everything you are doing to help your community and your country through this unprecedented health crisis. Public employees are on the frontlines of this crisis, and you are proving how invaluable your work is, and the vital role our union members play in times like these. ​
 
Please know that your WPEA family is here for you during these difficult and challenging times. You are not alone. We are one union family, and we are in this together. 
 
To help you and all our members, we have mobilized our emergency operations to ensure that member concerns and services are being addressed as quickly as possible. In addition, we will be providing you regular updates, such as those noted below, on what actions your local union and the International are taking to protect all of our members. 
 
Here are some of the actions we want you to know about:

1. Working with agencies to ensure that members stay safe and suffer no loss of pay. This includes supporting agencies as they expand telework options, recommending trainings members can do as they work from home, and ensuring that members who are at higher risk of exposure have proper training and protective bequipment (though that is in short supply, as you have likely heard).
   
   
2. Working with the governor’s office, administration, and other leaders to help enact policies that will protect and support public employees and our families. Governor Inslee has already issued guidance that says no one in self-quarantine should suffer a loss of pay, and the legislature has passed legislation expanding use of shared leave. The Employment Security Department has also made it easier to qualify for Unemployment Insurance for those who have been laid off or are on reduced schedules. You can see a list of new policies at https://esd.wa.gov/newsroom/covid-19
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3. Working with UFCW International, the Washington State Labor Council, and other allies to make sure that governments at all levels are addressing the needs of working families as they respond to the crisis. We need compassionate policies that put people first.
   
   
4. The UFCW wants to ensure that all our members are aware of the critical updates about this coronavirus pandemic coming out of Washington DC. If you are interested in these updates, please text “Prepared” to 83071. These alerts will provide you invaluable updates on the Congressional effort throughout this crisis.  
   
   
5. To make you aware of the protective measures recommended by the Center for Disease Control (CDC), we will be posting key information on our local union and International union websites. We’re also hosting weekly conference calls with stewards to ensure they have the most up-to-date information, and that they can share the specific issues facing individual worksites.
   
   
6. To help ensure your safety, we are strongly encouraging all of our members to reach out to us if they have any workplace concerns about their personal health or workplace safety. It is essential that we hear of these concerns from you so we can address them with your employer as quickly as possible.    
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With respect to your health, and the health of your loved ones, it is essential that we all take smart steps to protect ourselves. For example, if you show any symptoms of the coronavirus, which include fever, dry cough, and shortness of breath, you should immediately call your healthcare provider. To find out additional information of what you can and should do to protect yourself, please visit www.CDC.gov. 
 
On a more personal level, I know that these are incredibly stressful days for you and all members of our union family. During such trying moments, we want you to know that your union will be here for you. As difficult as the days ahead may be, we will get through this together. 
 
Thank you again for all the work you are doing for the citizens of Washington State!
 
Stay safe,
 
In Solidarity, 
 
Kent Stanford, President

​Dear Members,
 
During these unprecedented times of living and working with the COVID 19 virus, our union is seeking ways to protect our members at the worksite and to keep them in pay status. One critical way to keep our worksites healthy and to minimize disease spread is to for members to stay home when they are sick and telecommute as much as possible and that is what the Governor is directing. As we all come to grips with the actions and reactions from COVID 19 virus, the staff here at WPEA are working to try to find answers to the questions being posed by members. We know that many of our members must care for their children and others that depend on them for their livelihood. The direction from the Governor’s office is taking on many different forms in many of our worksites. The office of OFM has stated that all the state institutions should be “creative” with allowing employees to use all forms of leave. Indeed, we have even seen some worksites completely suspend their telework policy and allow the members to work from home. Others are still working out how to extend leave and continue to keep operating. Some worksite are considering closing but have not worked out the details. We are dealing with a many different situation unfolding at the same time and we want to get the best possible outcome for the members where we can. Everywhere we can, we will discuss all options for keeping members in pay status. The goal is to do all we can with the state to minimize the financial impact to the membership. WPEA is in contact with OFM and all the public sector unions are getting frequent updates from the OFM office.
 
There are so many different actions being taken around the state that we cannot provide nor can the State managers provide answers to all your questions. The public sector unions are advocating to the Governor, for everyone to receive paid time off for this incredible situation but that has not been granted by the Governor. He has declared that many of you should telework, but we are still seeking clarity on that decision as some members have not yet been given that permission from their management. We are seeking more information from OFM and some HR persons about members who must work cleaning the facilities and the protective gear they will need and who are the essential function personnel that must work and how will they be protected. More information from OFM is needed about childcare issues for members with children. As of today, we do not have the answers for these questions with exception of teleworking and as stated, we must get more clarity to get more members that option.  As we receive new information and/or get a new direction from the Governor’s office we will share it with our stewards and the membership. We know many of you are frustrated by the lack of answers as are we and we will continue to push for solutions to problems generated by this horrific situation.
 
The WPEA staff will be taken precautions as well for theirs and our members safety. Our staff is being directed to use all forms of electronic communications to prevent having the social contact that is being discouraged by the public health department. This means that when you contact a WPEA staff person you should be prepared to communicate by some form of electronic communication. Staff has been directed to only meet with members, HR and others in person if necessary. This direction is absolutely necessary to protect our staff as they have multiple sites to represent that could bring them in contact with someone with the virus.
 
Our WPEA office will also be engaging in teleworking also. Our office will be closed to visitors as of 3-17-20 but we will be monitoring the phones to return calls, answering the emails and providing updates on the website. We will be posting and texting and emailing all that we know to help you get the answers you are looking for. This situation will continue to change daily, and we will do our best to bring you the latest information and decision to help you through this.
 
 
Kent Stanford
President
 

HB 1888
Protecting employee information from public disclosure.
(Zack Hudgins, Tukwila)
HB 1888 has received bipartisan majority votes in both the House and Senate, and is ready for the governor’s signature.
In its current form, it gives all public employee birthdates and photos the same protection from public disclosure that law enforcement employees currently have. It also exempts disclosure of individual employees’ demographic information. Employers would be required to notify employees if there’s a public disclosure request for information found in the employee’s personnel, training, supervisory, or payroll file.
Thanks to everyone who called, wrote, emailed, or met with their legislators about the need to protect public employee privacy and safety.

HB 1521
Providing for accountability and transparency in government contracting.
(Laurie Dolan, Olympia)
HB 1521 has received bipartisan majority votes in both the House and Senate and is ready for the governor’s signature.
The bill will require additional transparency and accountability when state agencies decide to contract out state employees’ work. It has been worked like crazy over the years, and finally passed this year. It will require that state agencies and colleges document their decision-making process if they decide to contract out our members’ work. It also requires that contracts contain provisions that ensure the contractor – not the public – is responsible if state employees have to come back and redo work that contractors have botched.​

The bill to require community colleges to adopt a uniform fiscal reporting system (so that we can easily see the condition of a college’s finances) has transformed, butterfly-like, into a budget proviso at the Office of Financial Management. We’ll be tracking it to make sure the proviso stays in the final budget.

Session is scheduled to end this Thursday, March 12.