Washington State Employee 5/2015

8/9/2019 Washington State Employee 5/2015

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The ofcial newspaper of the

WASHINGTON FEDERATION OF STATE

EMPLOYEES/AFSCME Council 28•AFL-CIO

VOL. 43 NO. 4

MAY 2015

WASHINGTON

State Employee w w w . d

i s c o v e r p a s s . w

a . g

o v

Now good on either

of two vehicles!

INSIDE: Focus on Higher Education members - 3Workers Memorial Day at Western State, WSDOT - 6

Focus on WFSE/AFSCME Fish & Wildlife members

• See poster - 4• Your own

signs - 7 & 8STATEWIDE UNITY BREAKS MAY 20

There’s still time to apply forthe Federation’s SummerInstitute for Union WomenScholarships.

Deadline for Summer Institute for Union

Women Scholarships extended to May 28

The deadline has been ex-tended to May 28.

The forms are being updated

with the revised date.

But you can still use the formin the March WashingtonState Employee or online at:http://wfse.org/summer-institute-union-women-schol-arship/

UPDATE: WorkForce

Optimization memo

issued

DSHS members

aected by the WorkForceOptimization (WFO) programhave been waiting for this

— the follow-up memomemorializing agreementsmade at demand-to-bargainnegotiations March 12. If you

haven’t seen it, you can see itonline: http://wfse.org/wfo-memo-41315/

Washington State LaborCouncil labor awards open

Each year at its annualconvention, the Washing-ton State Labor Council,AFL-CIO presents awards

recognizing the eorts andaccomplishments of specicunion organizations and in-dividual union members. The2015 WSLC Convention will be July 23-25 at the Double-Tree Hotel in SeaTac.

The awards are theMother Jones Award, the El-sie Schrader Award and theBruce Brennan Award. Nomi-nation deadline for all three is June 1.

For more details on the

awards and to downloadnomination forms, go to:http://www.thestand.org/2015/04/submit-nom-inations-for-2015-labor-awards/

On a recent visit to the Goldendale Trout Hatchery,

WFSE/AFSCME President Sue Henricksen(at right with Shawn Magee, Local 2964) got

a rundown on the important work WFSE/AFSCMEmembers do there, like loading 12-pound rainbow troutto stock our lakes for recreational shing. These are thepeople we should think about the next time we go shing

– and why we have to ght attempts in the Legislature toclose some hatcheries.

One snapshot of Fish and Wildlife members in action:

Goldendale Hatchery members

doing the job for state shers

More online about how

hatcheries members are

using their union strength –

including to save hatcheries

in the state budget: http://

wfse.org/get-involved/sh-

wildlife-focus/

State Employee

WASHINGTON

DSHS members of

Local 53 along 19th

Avenue in Tacoma

during May 6 Unity

Break.

http://wfse.org/summer-institute-union-women-scholarship/http://wfse.org/summer-institute-union-women-scholarship/http://wfse.org/summer-institute-union-women-scholarship/http://wfse.org/summer-institute-union-women-scholarship/http://wfse.org/wfo-memo-41315/http://wfse.org/wfo-memo-41315/http://wfse.org/wfo-memo-41315/http://wfse.org/wfo-memo-41315/http://wfse.org/wfo-memo-41315/http://wfse.org/wfo-memo-41315/http://www.thestand.org/2015/04/submit-nominations-for-2015-labor-awards/http://www.thestand.org/2015/04/submit-nominations-for-2015-labor-awards/http://www.thestand.org/2015/04/submit-nominations-for-2015-labor-awards/http://www.thestand.org/2015/04/submit-nominations-for-2015-labor-awards/http://www.thestand.org/2015/04/submit-nominations-for-2015-labor-awards/http://www.thestand.org/2015/04/submit-nominations-for-2015-labor-awards/http://www.thestand.org/2015/04/submit-nominations-for-2015-labor-awards/http://www.thestand.org/2015/04/submit-nominations-for-2015-labor-awards/http://www.thestand.org/2015/04/submit-nominations-for-2015-labor-awards/http://wfse.org/wfo-memo-41315/http://wfse.org/wfo-memo-41315/http://wfse.org/wfo-memo-41315/http://wfse.org/wfo-memo-41315/http://wfse.org/wfo-memo-41315/http://wfse.org/summer-institute-union-women-scholarship/http://wfse.org/summer-institute-union-women-scholarship/http://wfse.org/summer-institute-union-women-scholarship/


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Page 2 WFSE/AFSCME Washington State Employee May 2015

StateEmployeeWashington State Employee (USPS 981-

200) is published monthly, except Februaryand July, for $5.08 per year by the Washing-ton Federation of State Employees/AFSCMECouncil 28 • AFL-CIO, 1212 Jefferson St. S.E.Suite 300, Olympia, WA 98501. Afliated withthe American Federation of State, Countyand Municipal Employees (AFSCME) and theWashington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO.

Periodicals postage paid at Olympia, WAand at additional ofces. Circulation:42,000.

POSTMASTER: Send address changes toWashington State Employee, 1212 JeffersonSt SE Suite 300 Olympia WA 98501- 7501

Sue Henricksen, President

Greg Devereux, Executive Director

Editor Tim Welche-mail: [email protected] • Internet: www.wfse.orgMember, ILCA

WASHINGTON

ELECTRONIC DELIVERY OPTION. If you’d like to save paper and postage, you can receive this newspaper electronically. Go to www.wfse.org and hoverover NEWS & INFO, located in the top menu bar. Select from the drop-down list: WASHINGTON STATE EMPLOYEE - Newspaper. Use the formon this page to register for the electronic version. Or e-mail us at [email protected], or write: WFSE/AFSCME, 1212 Jefferson St. S.E., Suite 300,Olympia, WA 98501. If you’re a represented non-member fee payer and you don’t wish to receive this publication in any format, e-mail us at con - [email protected], or write: WFSE/AFSCME, 1212 Jefferson St. S.E., Suite 300, Olympia, WA 98501.

THE CORNER PAGE

RPEC

CORNER

Another

in a series

of “Safety

doesn’t happen byaccident memes.”

SAFETY

CORNER

8

Safety Corner is a project of the WFSE/AFSCME

Health and Safety Committee.

The WFSE/ AFSCME Healthand SafetyCommittee hasthese tips forheat safety.

Even being outfor short periodsof time in hightemperaturescan cause seri-ous health prob-lems. Monitoryour activitiesand time in the

sun to lower yourrisk for heat-related illness.

• If you’re outsidein hot weather formost of the dayyou’ll need tomake an effort todrink more uids.• Avoid drinkingliquids that con-tain alcohol orlarge amounts ofsugar, especiallyin the heat.

The WFSE/ AFSCMEHealthand SafetyCommittee is

Know your

limits in heat

• Take breaks of-ten. Try to rest inshaded areas sothat your body’sthermostat willhave a chanceto recover. Stopworking if youexperiencebreathlessnessor muscle sore-ness.

• Pay atten-

tion to signs ofheat-related ill-ness, includingextremely highbody tempera-ture, headache,rapid pulse, diz-ziness, nausea,confusion, or un-consciousness.

• Watch peoplewho are at higherrisk for heat-related illness,including infants

and children up

to four years ofage; people 65years of age orolder; peoplewho are over-weight; peoplewho push them-selves too hardduring work orexercise; andpeople who are

physically ill or

SAFETY TIPS or your QUESTIONS on

workplace safety!

Please e-mail your questions ortips to:[email protected].

who take certainmedications (i.e.for depression,insomnia, or poorcirculation).

• Eat healthyfoods to helpkeep you ener-gized.

More information

Safety essay contest open

running an essaycontest.

Safety-relatedprizes will be

awarded towinners at

the union’sconventionin October inSeatac.

Submit a shortessay on “How

do you keepsafe at work?”and submit it at:[email protected].

Online:

rpecwa.org

Last in a series of reports

Widger was a speaker ata forum held at the Machin-ists Hall on April 2 in Seattle,focused on real retirementsecurity. The Retired PublicEmployees Council of Wash-ington (RPEC), along with theWashington State Alliance for

Retired Americans (WSARA)and the Machinists, hostedthis forum.

The forum was heldconcurrently with the WhiteHouse Council on Aging(WHCoA) Conference, whichwas one of several invitation-only regional conferencesheld across the country. Theconference focused on fourareas: Senior Fraud, HealthyAging, Long-Term Care, andRetirement Security, thoughretirement security only dealtwith reforming 401(k)s.

The real retirement se-

curity forum was open tothe public and emphasizedthe three-legged stool of re-tirement: Dened BenetPensions, Social Security,and Savings. “Our goal is tochallenge our government tomake retirement security apriority for all Americans,”says Widger, “and we need

AFSCME retirees at center of retirement security debate

“Americans have been told thatdened benet pensions are athing of the past and 401(k)s arethe new norm,” explains AnnWidger, director of the Ameri-can Federation of State, Countyand Municipal Employees (AF-SCME) Retirees. “But the truthis that the majority of peoplehave been moved from denedbenet plans to 401(k)s, and then

from 401(k)s to nothing. Thenew normal is that 50 percentof Americans near retirementage have no retirement, and thatis not only a travesty for thoseindividuals, but it is a disasterwaiting to happen for our publicservices unless we act.”

to preserve and expand theprograms that have beenproven, like Social Security,while ghting the misleadingmessages that pensions are athing of the past.”

The forum discussed the fol-

lowing legislative changes:• Scrapping-the-cap or

eliminate the cap on incomesubject to the Social Securitypayroll tax, currently set at$118,500.

• The Social Security’scost-of-living adjustmentshould be measured by theConsumer Price Index (CPI)for the elderly (CPI-E), notthe CPI for middle age peopleliving in an urban area, as iscurrently the case.

• Medicare should allowthe federal government tonegotiate directly with drugcompanies, to decrease costs.

• Policies need to be

created to incentivize the of-fering of dened benet pen-sions from employers.

Union retirees and com-munity action organizationsthat attended the WHCoAworked together to ensurethat the issues above werediscussed. In addition, thefollowing issues came out of

the conference:• Social Security should

allow caregivers to have acredit toward their SocialSecurity Benets, instead oftaking $0 for their FICA con-tributions for that period oftime, which drive their benetdown.

• A new uniform stan-dard should be set for nan-cial advisors to have to dowhat is “best” for their clients,to replace the current stan-

dard of what is “suitable.”• Long-term care nanc-

ing options need to be createdto keep seniors out of poverty.

• Better training and payis required to increase thequality and quantity of appro-priate long-term care workers.

• More education must be oered to all Americansregarding retirement savingsvehicles.

• More education forseniors to help them identifyscams.

While some of these is-sues may be sent to the nalWhite House Council onAging taking place in July,it is important that we standtogether in supporting eortsto maintain the programsand policies that have kept somany working families out ofpoverty, while also addressingnew ways to deal with build-ing up retirement security.

Attendees at recent forum.

online from the

Centers for Dis- ease Control:

Heat Stress:

http://www.cdc.

gov/niosh/topics/ heatstress/

Extreme Heat :

http://emergency.

cdc.gov/disasters/extremeheat/index.asp

Keep Your Coolin Hot Weather : http://www.cdc.gov/Features/

ExtremeHeat/

mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]://emergency.cdc.gov/disasters/extremeheat/index.asphttp://www.cdc.gov/Features/ExtremeHeat/http://www.cdc.gov/Features/ExtremeHeat/http://www.cdc.gov/Features/ExtremeHeat/http://www.cdc.gov/Features/ExtremeHeat/http://emergency.cdc.gov/disasters/extremeheat/index.aspmailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]


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WFSE/AFSCME Washington State EmployeeMay 2015 Page 3

MEMBERS IN ACTION: Higher Education members

In the wake of recent layoffs of classied staff at Green River Community Col-lege in Auburn, some 150 workers and members of WFSE/AFSCME Local 304marched on the college president April 22 with a huge open letter (inset) callingfor an end to the “atmosphere of insecurity.”

“Green River recently laid off two of our members and have announced plans

150 members march on Green River CC president to end “atmosphere of insecurity”of future layoffs,” WFSE/AFSCME Journey Organizer Vanessa Arpin said. “We didan open letter to administration demanding transparency around layoffs.”

“The lack of transparency that management has fostered has created an envi-ronment of distrust...,” the open letter read.

Community Colleges of Spokane members have voices heard on outsourcingAt the April 28 Community Colleges of Spokane Board of Trustees meeting at Spokane FallsCommunity College, college members of Local 1221 packed the meeting in the SFCC LodgeBuilding. WFSE/AFSCME Executive Director Greg Devereux spoke on behalf of the members andraised their serious concerns with ongoing issues around outsourcing of members’ work.

The Renton Technical College Bargaining Team has beenparticipating in interest-based bargaining with management forupcoming negotiations on the next collective bargaining agree-ment.

The WFSE/AFSCME RTC Bargaining Team (above) con-

sists of Julie Pock, Karen Noble, Kimberly Loreen and StacyHamilton.

The meetings have been going for several months and theteam hopes to nish sometime in May.

The RTC Bargaining Team has been busy elsewhere, too.They hosted two different lunchtime meetings to meet with co-workers and discuss proposals, the legislative session and howto bring aboutchange oncampus us-ing the voicethey have as aunion.

Renton Technical College members gear up for bargaining

University of Washing-ton Local 1488 membersrallied May 1 in supportof custodians – includingcustodian Salvador Castillo,who change.org said is beingunfairly targeted.

Some 75 Local 1488members, students, otherunion allies and communitysupporters turned out in theUniversity of Washington’sRed Square to continue theircall of support for custodi-ans and the public service

they provide --- and againstretaliation.

Ongoing issues include

high workload caused byunlled vacancies.

They marched from thesquare into the Administra-tion Building and presentedhundreds of petition sig-natures and petition com-ments to the chief of sta forInterim UW President AnaMari Cauce.

“We are not slaves,”custodian Neghisdy Hab-

UW members rally to support custodians

Habties

ties told the chief of sta Rolf Johnson.

“They (custodians) aretired (of the treatment)...,”

Local 1488 President PaulaLukaszek said.

“This has got to stop.”

LEFT: Castillo with

the hundreds of

petitions.

BELOW: UW junior

Leila Asfari (left)

joins the rally.

Frustration -- and resolve.

Supporter speaks after Lukaszek (left) presented petitions to Johnson (right).


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TAKE THE NEXT STEP • MAY 20 UNITY BREAKS!

WFSE/AFSCME Washington State EmployeePage 4 May 2015

JOIN STATEWIDE UNITY BREAKS MAY 20At noon on Wednesday, May 20, public employee union members across Washingtonare taking a break at the same time to send a powerful message to the state Senate:Do not cut our raises and health care. Fund our contracts because public servicematters!

For list of events: wfse.org (http://wfse.org/publicservicematters-coordinated-actions/)Or call your nearest WFSE/AFSCME eld ofce: http://wfse.org/contact/

12 Noon • Wednesday, May 20 • All across the state


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WFSE/AFSCME Washington State EmployeeMay 2015 Page 5

THE FACTS: FUND OUR CONTRACTS

Time to act during special session

From left: Public Service Matters event April 18 in Centralia; Alanna Gehr (South Puget Sound CC) recording Local 443 “Public Service Matters” radio ad April 30; Local 1326 member David Gutierrez

(Employment Security) interviewed by Yakima TV station April 22; Local 1488 members step up for public services and our contracts at May 1 University of Washington rally.

At press time, legislators were inthe midst of their 30-day special ses-sion. They adjourned April 24 withoutnishing work on a budget – andwhether to fund our contracts.

But leading up to and into specialsession, WFSE/AFSCME membersstepped up public pressure with a se-ries of “Public Service Matters” eventsaround the state that started April 18.Thousands of petitions signatures,emails to legislators and sympatheticnewspaper editorials followed. KeyRepublican senators appeared to begetting the message.

Jobsite actions continued. Radioads started.

But more must be done.That’s why it’s so important

to take part in the Statewide UnityBreaks set for Wednesday, May 20. Seeposter on page 4.

Why it matters: Our raises are atstake unless we remind the state Sen-ate that public service matters. TheSenate rejected our contracts — in-cluding our rst raises in seven years

— and wants to remove 20,000 stateemployee spouses o of their healthinsurance.

Time for action: Members voiceddetermination to keep up the high

road “Public Service Matters” seriesof WFSE/AFSCME action events tofund our contracts to keep good stateemployees who provide those vitalservices.

Olympia Local 443 members Justin Goodwin (Health Care Authority), DeFrance Clarke (Labor

and Industries) and Sarah C. Wilson (Employment Security Department) went into the studio April

30 to record the local’s ads about our contracts, which aired 100 times over the rst two weeks in

May. After describing what they do and why i t’s important, they conclude: “Like al l state employees,

this isn’t just a job to me. It’s public service that matters.” It was the rst phase of a radio ad cam-

paign by WFSE/AFSCME and other state employee unions that expanded statewide the second

week of May.

Local 843’s Kevin Allen.

• “I’d rather stand strong andght for what was agreed to, in goodfaith, than grovel for scraps from theWashington state Senate,” DavidPintuf, a Local 443 member at theDepartment of Natural Resources inOlympia commented on wfse.org.

• “Let’s keep the pressure on theHouse and Senate,” added Kevin Al-len , a Local 843 member with DSHS inKing County.

Your actions are making a difference -- let’s keep the momentum going

In a sign your actions areworking, a key Senate Repub-lican has publicly endorsedlegislative approval of thecontracts “as they were nego-tiated.”

Sen. Steve O’Ban of the28th District in the Lakewoodarea of Pierce County went onthe record with that thumbsup at the annual Workers’Memorial Day commemora-tion April 28 at Western StateHospital sponsored by Local793.

O’Ban was one of six Sen-ate Republicans who brokewith their caucus to vote forthe “Hargrove Amendment”

on April 3 that would havefully funded the contracts inthe Senate budget. But Senateleaders, including O’Ban, vot-ed for a rule change so suchamendments needed 30 votesto pass; the Hargrove Amend-ment got only 29.

O’Ban’s public commentswere the strongest indica-tion that your “Public ServiceMatters” messages in keysenators’ districts are gettingthrough and having an eectin the union’s blitz to fundour contracts.

O’Ban endorses funding contracts ‘as they were negotiated’

Sen. Steve O’Ban (left) with WFSE/AFSCME President Sue Henricksen after

his April 28 speech to Local 793 members endorsing funding of our contracts.

“I did votefor the contractsand I expectthat the Sen-

ate and House– when we getour budgetstogether – thecontracts will befully approvedas they were ne-gotiated,” O’Bansaid at the Local793 event.

“That’s as near a guaran-tee as you’ll get from a politi-cian. But I am near condentif not certain we will approvethose contracts by the timewe’re done.”

And despite O’Ban’spledge, there is some wiggleroom. The Senate moved its bad budget on a vote of 26-23.

Even if O’Ban voted with the23 Democrats, his vote wouldstill not be enough.

That is why his words tothe Local 793 audience don’tdiminish the harsh reality thatwe still face an uphill climbto get the votes to fund ourcontracts.

O’Ban’s prediction andvote alone won’t be enough.That’s why it’s important tokeep the momentum goingduring the Legislature’s 30-day special session now inprogress.

O’Ban ad-

dresses Local

793 members.

Sen. Jim Hargrove, spon-sor of the proposed amend-ment to fund our contractsthat fell one vote short in theSenate a few weeks back,stepped up the public pres-sure to fund our contracts.

In a guest editorial inthe April 30 Olympian (In- gredients for bipartisan budget

include revenue, pay raises),Hargrove identied fundingour contracts as one of the

Sen. Hargrove steps up pressure for contracts

top three issues that must bea priority in the nal compro-mise budget.

Hargrove wrote: “I be-lieve civil servants deservetheir rst general wage in-crease since 2008. That raisewas negotiated in good faithwith the Governor’s Oceand needs to be honored inour budget.

“The Republicans, how-ever, passed a budget thatinstead reduced the wageincrease and took a swipe athealth benets for spouses....

“As we double downon our eorts to nd com-mon ground in Olympia, we

know the public is waitingand watching. It’s up to us todeliver.”

Hargrove

Gov. Jay Inslee shakes

hands with Maria Pedersen

and other Local 443 volun-

teers at the Public Service

Recognition Week (PSRW)

event May 6 in Olympia.

There he concluded his

remarks saying public

employees deserve a 4.8

percent raise. He reinforced

his long-held endorsement of

the contracts.


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WFSE/AFSCME Washington State EmployeePage 6 May 2015

UNION NEWS

Paige Groner-Himes, a re-search analyst 2 with the Wash-ington State Patrol in Olympiaand a member of Local 443,has been approved for sharedleave. Contact: Lt. Chris Sweetat (360) 704-2390, or your hu-man resource ofce.

Tracy Kelley-Rios, a socialservices specialist 3 with DSHSin Forks and a member of Lo-cal 1463, is in need of sharedleave to cover time she is miss-ing while recovering from acancer surgery. She will needshared leave to cover the timeshe will miss during chemo andrecovery from reconstructivesurgery. Contact: DSHS HumanResources or your own humanresource ofce.

Tex Sullivan, an informationtechnician specialist 3 at theDepartment of Ecology in Laceyand a member of Local 872,has been approved for sharedleave as she undergoes a totalankle replacement. Contact:Logan Thuet at (360) 407-6182,or your human resource ofce.

Nadine Griggs, aWorkSource specialist 3 withthe Employment SecurityDepartment in Everett anda member of Local 1020, isstill in need of shared leaveto cover time she is missing

while recovering from a seriousillness that is requiring alengthy recuperation. Contact:Felicia Wright in ESD HumanResources at (360) 902-9532or your own human resourceofce.

John Alspaw, a nancialrecoverY enforcement ofcer3 at Western State Hospital inLakewood and a member ofLocal 793, has been approvedfor shared leave. contact yourhuman resource ofce.

Rene Whittington, anofce assistant 2 withthe Employment SecurityDepartment in Olympia and amember of Local 443, is still inneed of shared leave to covertime she is missing duringher recovery from a seriousback injury. She may needsurgery to ensure a completerecovery. Contact: ESD HumanResources at (360) 902-9532,or your own human resourcedepartment.

Rebecca Ashby, a socialservice specialist 3 with DSHSin Seattle and a member ofLocal 843, is still in need of

shared leave to cover time sheis missing during her treatmentfor an ongoing serious healthissue. Contact: Sandy Gumpat (206) 341-7246, or your ownhuman resources ofce.

Rebecca Moore, aninvestigator 2 with the HumanRights Commission in Olympiaand a member of Local 443,has been approved for sharedleave. Becky is to undergosurgery and will miss at leastthree weeks of work recovering.She has used all her available

SHARED LEAVE

REQUESTS

sick, vacation and personalleave. Contact: Kristan Kaphanat (360) 407-9218, or yourHuman Resource ofce.

Orson Williamson, a highvoltage electrician at SeattleCentral Community Collegeand a member of Local 304,has been approved for sharedleave. He has been diagnosedwith severe medical illnesses.Orson has used all available

sick, vacation and personalleave. He will be out for anundetermined length of time.Contact: your human resourceofce.

Julie Johnson, an attendantcounselor 2 at the DSHS StateOperated Living Alternative(SOLA) in Spokane and amember of Local 573, is inneed of shared leave. Contact:Enola Kaplan at (509) 299-

1800, or your human resourceofce.

Bernie Tyacke, an auditor 4with the Department of Laborand Industries in Vancouverand a member of Local 313,is in need of shared leavewhile he has knee surgery andrecovery. Bernie will be off the job ve to six weeks. Contact:your human resource ofce.

Shared leave requests online:http://wfse.org/shared-leave/ To place approved shared

leave requests: [email protected],

or 1-800-562-6002. Online:http://wfse.org/shared-leave/

8

On pages 7 & 8:

Cut out. Use. Send us your photos: [email protected] can also download those signs: http://wfse.org/publicservicematters-signs/

Just for you -- your very own

Public Service Matters signs

Western State Hospital Local 793 held its an-nual Workers’ Memorial Day event April 28 at thestate’s most dangerous worksite to send the mes-sage statewide that “we mourn for the dead butght for the living.”

Dozens of members, other union allies andtwo senators made the somber procession pastmarkers representing the nearly 300 Western Statesta injured in the past year.

“No one should have to come to work and behurt,” Local 793 President James Robinson said.

“We must do better.”

‘We must do better’

Local 793 President

James Robinson leads

somber procession at the

local’s annual Workers

Memorial Day commemo-

ration at Western State

Hospital.

The event was a time for fellowship at the most dangerous

worksite in the state. Clockwise form lower left, members

from WSH Health Information Management Services: Kore-

ena Brazil, Vy Yun, Debra Nixon, Barbara Thompson and

Inocencio Estrera.

Larry Flue (Local 378) and Kate Rogers (Local 1060) pay respects at the

memorial to fallen Highway Maintenance co-workers

Governor signs ‘life-changing’ law

dedicated to families of ‘Fallen 59’Nellie Williams (left)

and Kelsey Williams

(center) with WFSE/

AFSCME Lobbyist

Matt Zuvich after

Gov. Jay Inslee April

22 signed HB 1977,

which waives fees for

tuition, services and

activities of children

and surviving spouses of highway workers who lost their lives or becametotally disabled in the line of duty. The sisters lost their dad, Sam Williams,

a Highway Maintenance member of Local 1290 on Feb. 22, 2000, when a

motorist hit him in a work zone along Highway 12 in Lewis County.

Inslee signed the DOT survivors

bill at the start of the agency’s

annual Worker Memorial event

to honor the “Fallen 59” – the 59

Washington State Department of

Transportation members killed on

the job since 1950. “It’s life-chang-

ing,” Nellie Williams said.

“It’s going to relieve unspoken fears of my co-workers,” said Kate Rogers,

a Highway Maintenance member of Local 1060 in Greenbank who testi-

ed for the bill during the regular legislative session.

http://wfse.org/shared-leave/http://wfse.org/shared-leave/http://wfse.org/shared-leave/http://wfse.org/shared-leave/http://wfse.org/publicservicematters-signs/http://wfse.org/publicservicematters-signs/http://wfse.org/shared-leave/http://wfse.org/shared-leave/


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Washington State Employee 5/2015

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