Democratic legislative staff in Washington approve first-ever labor contract

[MichMan]

1. Next step is for the legislature to fund it

Each contract contains pay hikes of 3% on July 1, 2025 and 2% a year later, the same amount offered to other state employee unions. State lawmakers and the next governor, Bob Ferguson, will now decide whether to fund them in the next two-year budget.

Under the collective bargaining law, state employee unions — including legislative staff units — needed to submit a ratified contract by Oct. 1 to be considered for funding. Because Democratic staff did not meet the deadline, they will need to make a separate case to Ferguson and lawmakers to fund their deals.