Our staff and supervisor WSNA teams met with the County on July 30 for our fourteenth session (yes, you read that right – 14 sessions!).

The ball was in the County’s court to respond to our priority proposals, continuing to include:

1. Wage scale and pay rates that recognize the years of experience of nurses across their career, as is done across the industry for other nurses in our region.
2. Maintenance of reduced or free parking costs for KCCF nurses, depending on shift worked.
3. Inclusion of the ability to grieve cases of discrimination, in common with the majority of other union contracts at the County.
4. The ability to top off pay with accrued leave for parental leave provisions that align with the law.
5. Persistent short staffing that is only getting worse in 24-hour facilities like JHS and DAJD.
6. Ability to accrue up to 80 hours of comp time.

The County had little in response to these proposals, despite being in negotiations with us for nearly 8 months!

The County’s actions are beyond disappointing and do not show the respect for nurses they claim to have.

Rejection, deflection, and delay

Despite our intensive longevity workgroup in 2024, focusing on adopting a wage step scale that matches industry practice the County not only rejected our proposal outright, but proposed a 3-year contract with annual increases that would actually be less than other employees at the County. This is unacceptable! Not only is the County failing to live up to its promise to incorporate an industry standard wage step scale into the contract, it’s also offering substandard wage increases that do nothing to make up for its disappointing offers elsewhere.

Stop wasting our time!

While we consider some proposals, we let the County know in no uncertain terms that if they are not prepared to make substantive movement at our next scheduled session on August 11, we have no interest in meeting. 

To move the County out of their disrespectful and inefficient sluggishness, WE are prepared to escalate further with our collective power!

Sign the internal WSNA petition if you have not already. We will bring to decision-makers and stakeholders very soon! 

The Seattle King County community deserves to know what is at stake and how to support the nurses in this fight for a strong, fair contract. The following will be available at most work sites early next week in hard copy, as well as digital links.

Share the public petition with friends, family, and neighbors. Please share the public petition QR code virtually on personal social media or pick up QR code flyers.

Display support placards in your rear car window, take a selfie or group picture with coworkers, family and friends and send to Nurse Rep tbarnes@wsna.org

Keep submitting ADOs online. We review the high volume that has come in over the past few months on August 7 at the JHS LMC https://www.wsna.org/union/ado

Thank you to the nurses who joined us for virtual Sip n’ Chats this week with us 😊 We’ll notify the nurses for future dates.

Follow us on social media https://www.instagram.com/phskc_staffnurses/

More to come as we take our campaign to the public!

Contact any bargaining team member with questions.

In solidarity,

Elena Schensted, CHS at Columbia City PH clinic
Stephen Lee, Jail Health at MRJC
Evie Devera, CHS at Downtown PH clinic
Tami Nesler, Jail Health at MRJC 
Carolyn Clark, Jail Health at KCCF 
Kiesha Garcia-Stubbs, CHS at Downtown PH clinic

Tara Barnes, WSNA Nurse Representative tbarnes@wsna.org