Earlier this month on Jan. 14 and Jan 21, WSNA Staff and Supervisor bargaining units met with the County again to bargain over the three items of bonus, general wage increase, and two additional holidays.

On January 14 we presented counter-proposals for the additional holidays and the general wage increases and we are waiting for a response from the County on both, as they did not have them this past Friday. We are still in discussions regarding the bonus.

None of these proposals is straightforward. The County is asking that we give up a lot to achieve these gains, and we are bargaining over how that will look. For the Bonus, the County wants to decrease the amount each RN will receive by the amount they received in the form of a contract ratification bonus. That bonus was achieved in 2020 and paid early in 2021. They also want us to agree to expanded shared staffing, specifically for the Staff Unit. There are still outstanding items that WSNA needs from the County to fully evaluate their proposals. We want you to get what the coalition members are getting, as announced in December 2021. We are committed to the difficult work of bargaining with the County to achieve these gains and give up the least we can to achieve this.

Understand that the County is not required to give the nurses what the other unions achieved, nor are they required to meet with us now, mid-contract, to discuss. We are pleased that the County has done so and believe that they understand the value you bring to public health. We do not yet have a date for our next bargaining session but will keep you updated as we get more information.

Your WSNA Staff and supervisor bargaining team,

Tami Nesler, Grievance Officer, staff
Tyler Breier, Chair, staff
Carolyn Clark, Grievance Officer, staff
Nicole Klein, Co-Chair, supervisors
Louise Peterson, Secretary/Treasurer, supervisors
Michelle Moore, WSNA nurse rep, staff
Sydne James, WSNA nurse rep, supervisors

Questions or comments? Find your bargaining team contact info via these links:

For staff RNs: https://www.wsna.org/union/seattle-king-county-health-dept-staff

For supervisor RNs: https://www.wsna.org/union/seattle-king-county-health-dept-supervisors