March 14, 2014
Seattle – Exempt employees who work at the four Seattle Community College campuses today voted 68-39 to form their own union through a secret ballot process certified by the Washington State Public Employment Relations Commission in Olympia. The vote means that 156 staff who work in advising, IT, financial aid, student outreach, and other departments will be represented by the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) Washington. Faculty at Seattle Community Colleges are already represented by AFT Washington.
Statement on Governor Inslee’s State of the State Address
By AFT Washington President Karen Strickland
We are pleased to hear today in his State of the State Address that one of Governor Inslee’s top priorities this session is to educate every child, from early learning to higher education, and that he is backing his priority by advocating for $200 million in school funding this session.
Maria Haynes, a paraEducator with Tacoma Public Schools, talks about the importance of having positive, caring adults in a child's life to help them succeed.
Pierce College adjunct instructor Michael Boggess believes that equitable faculty hiring and working conditions are important to having a world-class community college system.
AFT Seattle faculty member Tracy Lai talks about how community colleges are considering taking the word "community" out of their names and how that symbolizes an important change in mission and purpose of the community college system.