Gov. Inslee signs WEA priority legislation
03/27/2018
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Gov. Jay Inslee and WEA President Kim Mead celebrate the WEA priority bills Inslee signed Tuesday. Sen. Steve Conway, a staunch union supporter, is on the left.
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Inslee signed House Bill 1237, which grants community and technical college faculty the right to negotiate pay raises with local funding. It's been a WEA priority for more than a decade and represents a major victory for union rights. It was the top policy bill in WEA's Unity Agenda for the 2018 legislative session, which ended March 8.
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Inslee also signed Senate Bill 6362, which improves on the McCleary school funding plan the Legislature approved last year – and includes educator salary increases in the 2018-19 school year.
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WEA higher education Chair Carla Naccarato-Sinclair said the faculty bargaining bill shows that legislators understand the importance of quality faculty.
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Supporters of faculty collective bargaining rights gather around Gov. Inslee as he signs HB 1237.
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With more than a billion dollars in new state funding for K-12 educator salaries, certificated and classified school employees also have a huge opportunity to negotiate significant salary increases this year. Professional, competitive pay is needed to recruit and retain qualified, committed educators for our students, said Kim Mead, WEA president.
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Mead said the new school funding is a victory for public education.Â
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"We will continue to advocate for what all of our students need to be successful," Mead said.
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Posted in: Class size | Education funding | Professional pay | Higher education | Bargaining rights | Local control | COLA | Legislative Issues
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