VOL. 43 NO.

www.discoverpass.wa.gov

NOVEMBER 2015

Meet our new Executive Board.

See pages 6-7.

State Employee
The official newspaper of the
WASHINGTON FEDERATION OF STATE
EMPLOYEES/AFSCME Council 28AFL-CIO

WASHINGTON

Now good on either

of two vehicles!

Its budget time

On Dec. 3,
help make
sure our
services are
a priority

e
d
i
w
e
Stat
Day of
Action
5
1
/
3
/
2
1

In Employment Security (far left) and

Longview (near left), theyve already
marked their calendars for Dec. 3.
You should, too.

Mark your calendar for our Day of Action Dec. 3 Details, page 5

Every voice counts: Childrens Administration members

Members step up effort to

protect at-risk children

LEFT: Childrens members brainstorm solutions in breakout session with WFSE/AFSCME Council
Rep. Michael Abate. ABOVE: Shetha Alaskar of FUSE/Washingtons Communications Hub, helps
members with tips on telling their personal stories to community and political leaders.
Members from the DSHS
Childrens Administration
gathered Oct. 24 in Seattle
for the WFSE/AFSCME Childrens Seminar to step up
the unions efforts to protect
children.
That effort so far has
yielded many results, including more line-level workers in
the latest state budget -- after
pressure from Childrens
members postcard campaign
last year shed increasing light
on the unacceptably high
caseloads.
Those high caseloads

concern everyone in the union

because at-risk children may
not be as well served and protected as they should be. And
they lead to high turnover as
Childrens workers seem to
be asked to do the impossible
without all the resources and
staff the courts and national
standards mandate.
You guys are a tough
bunch but I continue to worry
about you, WFSE/AFSCME
President Sue Henricksen
said.
The Oct. 24 seminar
aimed to hone the focus go-

ing into the 2016 legislative

session when Federation
members will push to get the
remaining new needed staff -the governor and House had
supported more than 100 new
positions in Childrens but
Senate opposition resulted in
a final package of under 50
new staff.
Thatll be the kind of
challenge with many hurdles
Federation members are committed to.
Its our job to push up
hill, WFSE/AFSCME Legislative and Political Action

Director Dennis Eagle told

seminar participants.
The group also recommitted to the vision and values of
the efforts to boost Childrens
programs, identified regional
and statewide issues and possible solutions, and received
training on how to communicate to lawmakers, community groups, co-workers
and neighbors the urgency of
doing more to protect at-risk
children -- by telling their
stories to emphasize that real
peoples lives are at stake.

Voicing concerns about Community College funding. Union reps from

WFSE/AFSCME, the Washington Education Association, American Federation of Teachers-Washington and the Washington Public Employees Association meet with State Board for Community and Technical Colleges Budget
Director Nick Lutes to discuss the new funding allocation model. See page 3.

THE CORNER PAGE

MEMBERS ONLY BENEFITS CORNER
New Peoples Memorial Association members-only benefit
NEW FOR 2016!
Through a special arrangement with Peoples
Memorial Association, duespaying members of the Washington Federation of State
Employees/AFSCME can get
a discounted lifetime membership rate that gives them
access to this new benefit. It
helps members and their families avoid the confusion, sales
pressure and high expense often associated with cremation
and burial arrangements.
Members
pay one lifetime membership fee
of $25 (compared to the
normal $35
fee) to join Peoples Memorial Association. For that $25
fee, members get sizeable cost
savings at the associations
Seattle Cooperative Funeral
Home, 19 contracted funeral
homes across Washington and
six cemeteries. Youd have
access to the Indigent Cremation Fund. Youd also become
automatic members of the
national Funeral Consumers
Alliance, which has affiliates
Neville B. Crippen Grantin-Aid Awards Three WFSE/
AFSCME members have
been awarded Neville B.

RPEC CORNER
Online: rpecwa.org
The cost of medical care
in the United States rose by
0.7 percent last year, according to the Bureau of Labor
Statistics. Thats the largest
increase in eight years.
While 5 percent of an
Americans income is spent
on healthcare overall, seniors
spend 20 percent of their income on health care.
Because of this, it is very
important that public employees take extreme care when
planning their healthcare coverage during retirement.
Below are some questions that may help you on

State Employee
WASHINGTON

Washington State Employee (USPS 981200) is published monthly, except February

and July, for $5.08 per year by the Washington Federation of State Employees/AFSCME
Council 28 AFL-CIO, 1212 Jefferson St. S.E.
Suite 300, Olympia, WA 98501. Affiliated with
the American Federation of State, County
and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) and the
Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO.
Periodicals postage paid at Olympia, WA
and at additional offices. Circulation:
42,000.
POSTMASTER: Send address changes to
Washington State Employee, 1212 Jefferson
St SE Suite 300 Olympia WA 98501-7501
Sue Henricksen, President
Greg Devereux, Executive Director
Editor Tim Welch
e-mail: tim@wfse.org Internet: www.wfse.org
Member, ILCA

Page 2

across the United States.

This is offered exclusively
for WFSE/AFSCME full duespaying members. The lifetime
membership fee is per person
and is available to all full
dues-paying members, their
immediate families, including
their parents. Children under
18 are covered by their parents or grandparents membership. Once children turn
18, they must apply and pay
for their own membership.
The unions MembersOnly Benefits Committee
approved our new Peoples
Memorial Association benefit
Nov. 7.
Why is this new exclusive
members-only benefit important?
Funeral arrangements can
be one of the top expenses
a family encounters in their
lifetime, after buying a house
and car. The difference? When
shopping for a house or car,
buyers shop. They research,
Crippen Grant-in-Aid Awards
for Fall Quarter 2015: Jessica Hausman, Local 872,
Ecology, Lacey; Stacy Lang,

compare prices and determine

what suits them and their
families best. People rarely
shop when they need funeral
services. That means the funeral industry can charge
whatever they want and
consumers have to pay it.
Peoples Memorial Association was formed in 1939
by a group of church congregations to gain collective
bargaining power to do something about this expensive,
predatory industry.
Now, 75 years later, Peoples Memorial Association
has more than 80,000 living
members. And now WFSE/
AFSCME full dues-paying
members can join those ranks
with the exclusive $25 lifetime
membership with Peoples
Memorial Association.

As a public sector employee,

I am automatically eligible
for PEBB (Public Employees
Benefits Board health insurance, right?
There are three general
eligibility requirements to
receive PEBB retiree health
insurance:
You must enroll or defer
coverage no later than 60 days
after your employer-paid or
COBRA coverage ends. If you
miss that 60-day window,
you lose all rights to enroll in
the PEBB Program in the future. To regain eligibility you
would have to return to work
in a PEBB benefits eligible
position.
You must be vested in a
Washington state-sponsored
retirement plan or meet the
same age and years of service
as is required of state-sponsored retirees.
You must receive a

A MEMBERS ONLY BENEFIT for WFSE/AFSCME members and their families!

Every Reason to Smile

General

Specialty

Orthodontics

USE WISELY

before your dental

dollars expire

Most dental benefits dont roll over to the next year and unused dental
benefit dollars may be lost. So dont delay if you need dental care.
Call a Bright Now! Dental office today!

CHOOSE WISELY

during open
enrollment

State open enrollment in November is a great time to choose the dental option
that makes the most sense for you and your family. Bright Now! Dental is available
to those in the Uniform Dental Plan (UDP) or Delta Care. (The Willamette option
cannot be used at a Bright Now! Dental office.)

Bright Now! Dental Save a minimum of 35% on

out-of pocket costs with Exclusive Member Pricing

1-888-BRIGHT NOW (274-4486)

www.brightnow.com

Bright Now! Dental benefits apply to individuals receiving general dental care in these offices only and not to services referred to specialists. Pricing is subject to the limitations of your plan. Specialty services are not offered in all locations. Fees will vary for specialty care.

Questions?

Carrie.Magnuson @ smilebrands.com

253-405-4547

SAFETY CORNER

For more information:

http://wfse.org/join-2/
www.peoplesmemorial.org
(206) 529-3800
WFSE/AFSCME discount
membership information online:
https://peoplesmemorialorg.
presencehost.net/membership/union-membership-form.
html
Local 782, Eastern State Hospital, Medical Lake; and Kady
Titus, Local 1054, DSHS,
Colville.

Retirees & health care

your way, whether retirement
is one year away, or 10-plus
years away.

Spotlight benefit of the month

monthly retirement plan payment or a lump sum payment

as allowed by the plan, with
one exception. Plan 3 members do not have to receive a
retirement plan payment or a
lump sum actuarially equivalent payment as allowed by
the plan but must meet the
age and length of service requirements.
How should I enroll for
PEBB retiree insurance?
Step 1: Contact the Social Security Administration
About 90 days before your
active employment or COBRA
ends, contact the Social Security Administration to enroll
in Medicare Part A and Part B
if you or any family members
you wish to cover are entitled
to Medicare.
Step 2: Request a retiree enrollment packet
Sixty days before your active
employment or COBRA ends
request a retiree enrollment
packet. Call 1-800-200-1004 or
360-725-0440 in the Olympia
area.

Step 3: Return your completed retiree application

You must submit a Retiree
Coverage Election/ Change
form to enroll or defer enrollment.
If I defer participation in the
medical coverage, can I still
receive the dental coverage?
No. The dental coverage and
medical coverage go hand-inhand.
How much does it cost?
Generally, the rates change
every Jan. 1. The average
monthly cost of PEBB is $537
for a single person who is notMedicare eligible in 2015 and
$178 for a single person who
is Medicare eligible ($234 for
Uniform Medical).
If I do not start receiving my
retirement right away, can I
keep my health insurance?
If you do not meet the
DRS criteria for retirement
when your employment ends
or you choose not to retire,
you may have the option to
use COBRA coverage as a
bridge to retirement. To
use COBRA as a bridge to
retirement, you must enroll
in COBRA coverage and meet
the DRS criteria for retirement

when your COBRA coverage

ends.
If you are not eligible to
retire according to the DRS
requirements when you
separate from employment or
when your COBRA coverage
ends, you are not eligible for
PEBB retiree coverage.
If you are a member of
a DRS Plan 3 separating employment and have met the
age and length of service requirements for your plan, but
are not retiring with DRS, you
may still be eligible.
If my PEBB plan covers prescription drugs and I
also carry Medicare Part D,
my medications are covered,
right?
If your PEBB plan covers medications, it does not
coordinate prescription drug
coverage with Medicare Part
D. All PEBB plans cover
prescription drugs except
Premera Blue Cross Medicare
Supplement Plan F. If you
enroll in Medicare Part D, you
must enroll in Premera Blue
Cross Medicare Supplement
Plan F or lose your PEBB retiree coverage.

ELECTRONIC DELIVERY OPTION. If youd like to save paper and postage, you can receive this newspaper electronically. Go to www.wfse.org and hover
over NEWS & INFO, located in the top menu bar. Select from the drop-down list: WASHINGTON STATE EMPLOYEE - Newspaper. Use the form
on this page to register for the electronic version. Or e-mail us at info@wfse.org, or write: WFSE/AFSCME, 1212 Jefferson St. S.E., Suite 300,
Olympia, WA 98501. If youre a represented non-member fee payer and you dont wish to receive this publication in any format, e-mail us at contactus@wfse.org, or write: WFSE/AFSCME, 1212 Jefferson St. S.E., Suite 300, Olympia, WA 98501.

WFSE/AFSCME Washington State Employee

November 2015

UNION NEWS
Solving the IT recruitment and retention problem
by DeFrance Clarke

week for about eight weeks.

At L&I the request filtered
down to the worker level with
a request for volunteers. At
other agencies union activists
requested to be allowed to
volunteer.

Local 443, L&I

The state of Washington has finally recognized

that we have a crisis in the
recruitment and retention of
Information Technology (IT)
professionals. The incredible variation of IT skills is
currently represented by a
single job series (Information
Technology Specialist or ITS1
through ITS7). Gov. Jay Inslee
directed the State Human
Resources Division (formerly
DOP) to conduct a classification study that kicked off this
spring.

Clarke (standing) lays out IT options at one worksite meeting earlier this year at
Labor and Industries in Tumwater.

State HR designed a new

Position Description Form
(PDF) solely for IT workers
and requested agencies to
work closely with their IT
staff to complete the new job
descriptions. A key factor in
the new form was the requirement to identify a primary
and secondary job family that
the position belongs to. General descriptions of the 11 job
families were provided.

from the affected employee.

At other agencies (notably
Labor and Industries) it was
a collaborative effort between
the supervisor and the employee. The new PDFs were
due to State HR by Sept. 30;
but that deadline was extended when many of the smaller
agencies did not finish in
time. At last count, State HR
had 3,972 PDFs and is starting
to analyze them.

Management at some
agencies wrote the new PDFs
themselves with no input

They have created an

evaluation tool for that
analysis and are calibrating

What has the Union done?

WFSE/AFSCME, coalition urge caution

on budget reductions at colleges
WFSE/AFSCME joined
other education unions Oct.
29 to urge caution as the
State Board for Community

SHARED LEAVE
REQUESTS
STILL IN NEED OF SHARED
LEAVE:
Kimberly Domitrovich, a
mental health technician 1
at Eastern State Hospital in
Medical Lake and a member
of Local 782, has had surgery
and will need extensive rehabilitation. Because of diabetic
complications, she had to have
a leg amputated. She has exhausted all leave resources.
Contact: Laura Farley, (509)
565-4680.
Jane Zimmer, a support enforcement officer 4 with DSHS
in Vancouver and a member
of Local 313, is requesting
shared leave to cover her
extended time off during her
recuperation from a serious
accident. Contact: Pam Miller,
(360) 397-9704, or your own
human resource office.
More shared leave requests:
Joshua Drollinger, a financial services specialist 4 with
DSHS in Port Angeles and a
member of Local 1463, has
been approved for shared

November 2015

and Technical Colleges implements a new budget allocation model sparked in part
by a reduction in base state
leave. Contact: your human
resource office.
Karen Lucero, a secretary
senior in the DSHS Region 2
Office of Indian Child Welfare (Division of Children and
Family Services) in Seattle
and a member of Local 843,
has been approved for shared
leave. Contact: your human
resource office.
Rene Whittington, an office
assistant 2 with the Employment Security Department
in Olympia and a member of
Local 443, has been approved
for shared leave because of
a serious health condition.
Contact: Felicia Wright, (360)
902-9532.
Sue Martinez, a financial services specialist 4 at the DSHS
Everett Community Service
Office and a member of Local
948, has been approved for
shared leave. Contact: your
human resource office.
Jadira Amaya, an office assistant 3 in the DSHS Statewide CSD Customer Service
Contact Center HIU Team in
Yakima and a member of Local 1326, is in need of shared
leave donations to cover time
off for surgery and recovery.

it with the IT community.

WFSE is requesting a copy of
the draft tool and information
about who is calibrating it.
When additional information
is received, it will be posted
the on WFSE website under
News, then click on IT.

WFSE has appointed Elizabeth Turnbow, a WFSE organizing supervisor, to monitor

the process of the IT Classification Study and to mobilize
IT members to provide input
to the state in order to get the
best possible outcome for our
members. Elizabeth is working in concert with WFSEs
Classification and Compensation staff. She has organized
a steering committee and has
held two meetings for interested members. More meetings are planned.

What can you do?

State HR has also solicited

the agencies for panels of experienced IT people in each
of the families to go through
PDFs with the tool. They expect the panels to be formed
by mid-November and to
work an entire day once a

1. Get involved. Send your

home email address to ElizabethT@WFSE.org to get on
the contact list. If you would
rather be contacted by text or
phone, let Elizabeth know.

funding.
The board is phasing the
reductions in over four years.
WFSE/AFSCME Higher
Education Strategic Coordinator Mark Hamilton joined
with coalition partners American Federation of TeachersWashington, Washington

Public Employees Association

and the Washington Education Association at the board
meeting.

She has exhausted her leave

balances. Contact: Connie
Weedin, (509) 225-7931.

because of a serious medical

condition. She has exhausted
all her leave balances. Contact: your human resource
office.

Demetria Batdorf, a medical

assistance specialist 3 with the
state Health Care Authority in
Olympia and a member of Local 443, is in need of shared
leave through at least the end
of November. Contact: your
human resource office.
Deandra Standley, a financial
services specialist 3 at the
DSHS Pierce North Community Service Office in Tacoma
and a member of Local 53,
is in need of shared leave.
Contact: your human resource
office.
Nicole Davidson, a WorkFirst program specialist at the
DSHS Bellingham Community
Service Office and a member
of Local 1060, is in need of
shared leave because of a
serious medical condition. She
has exhausted all her available
leave. Contact: your human
resource office.
Tamara Marshall, a financial
services specialist 4 at the
DSHS Puyallup Community
Service Office and a member of Local 53, has been
approved for shared leave

2. Get a copy of your new IT

Together we will be keeping

a close eye on the implementation and impacts of the new
allocation method, and would

Stacey Logan, a financial

services specialist 3 with the
DSHS Child Care West Team
in Bremerton, is in need of
shared leave because of a
serious health condition; she
does not have enough accrued
leave to cover all of her absences. Contact: your human
resource office.
Michelle McDonald, a financial services specialist 3 with
DSHS at the Statewide CSD
Customer Service Contact
Center Southeast Team in
Yakima and a member of Local 1326, is dealing with the
aftermath of chemotherapy
and fibromyalgia. She continues to need intermittent leave
for these serious health conditions. She has exhausted all
her accrued leave. Contact:
your human resource office.
Christine Magnuson, a financial services specialist 3 with
the DSHS CSCC Northwest
Phone Team in Mount Vernon
and a member of Local 1060,
is in need of shared leave because of a serious health con-

WFSE/AFSCME Washington State Employee

PDF (Position Description

Form). Examine it closely to
make sure it represents the job
you are doing now. If you are
being told the new form is not
available to you, let Elizabeth
(and your WFSE/AFSCME
council representative) know
as soon as possible.
3. Are you a subject-matter
expert? Ask your supervisor and your human resource
department to forward your
name as a subject matter expert to the evaluation team
for the IT family identified on
your PDF (Position Description Form).
4. Come to the next meeting
scheduled in your worksite
to make sure your views are
included in our strategy going
forward.
like to be seen as a partner
in minimizing the impacts
to our members working
conditions and the students
learning conditions, Hamilton told the board.

dition. Contact: Vickie Rothenbuhler, (360) 714-4006, or your

human resource office.
Charlie Johnson, a financial
services specialist 4 at the
DSHS Lakewood Community
Service Office and a member
of Local 53, has been approved for shared leave because of a family members
severe medical condition.
Contact: your human resource
office.
Jackie Sledge, a contract officer with DSHS in Lacey and a
member of Local 443, is recuperating from surgery following
a recent automobile accident.
Shell need leave at least
through the rest of the year.
Contact: your human resource
office.
Tonya Ahsoak-Stevens, a
financial services specialist
3 with DSHS in Bremerton,
has been approved for shared
leave because of a serious
medical condition. She will
soon exhaust all of her leave
balances. Contact: your
human resource office.

Page 3

EVERY VOICE COUNTS : Mark your calendars

Mark your calendar for the Statewide Day of Action Dec. 3

de
Statewi
Day of
Action
12/3/15
For general information:
Go to wfse.org
Follow us on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/
wfsec28/
Call our Hotline:
1-800-562-6102

ov. Jay Inslees

new budget
comes out in De-

cember.
On Thursday, Dec. 3,
we will have a statewide
desk drop covering the
impact of budget and
revenue on our health
care, wages and services
we provide.
Weve all seen the recent
media reports balanced and
unbalanced about the services our members provide

and the funding hurdles they

face protecting us and some
of this states most vulnerable
citizens.
Legislators are quickly
finding themselves in the unenviable position of limited
general fund dollars, a newly
passed Tim Eyman initiative
that threatens to shrink the
state general fund even more,
and service gaps in our safety
net services that approach unconstitutional levels.
But no matter where you
work, mark your calendar for
our Day of Action Dec. 3

Why a Day of Action?

We must take action to
ensure the governor makes
vital services and the workload of public employees a
top priority.

For more information...

For more information on
the Dec. 3 Statewide Day of
Action and how you can help
get information to co-workers:
Call your union council
representative at your near-

est WFSE/AFSCME field

office:
Seattle 1-800-924-5754
Smokey Pt. 1-800-967-3816
Olympia 1-800-624-0256
Tacoma 1-800-924-5753
Vancouver 1-800-967-9356
Spokane 1-800-442-8618
Yakima 1-800-439-9855
Or contact Irene Smith in
our Organizing Department,
1-800-562-6002 or irenes@
wfse.org

Health Schedule a WFSE/AFSCME Health Care Workshop

care
matters
WFSE/AFSCME is offering Health Care Workshops to
inform you about what youve gained and important future
trends and strategies to avoid extra costs.
It can be complicated but its important to talk about the future of our health care.
One key part of the workshop is the impact of the excise tax
the Affordable Care Act will impose on high-cost employersponsored health coverage. The workshops will present strategies to avoid the tax.

Why the WFSE/AFSCME Health Care Workshops are important:

In the weeks & months ahead, we need to prepare forour

next contract. WFSE/AFSCME-led coalition bargaining will
take place in Summer 2016.
Learn about how all of us banding together as a union can
influence health care costs and coverage for state employees.
Whats ahead for the states SmartHealth wellness program.
Future pressures on plan design and other future trends.

Schedule a WFSE/AFSCME Health Care Workshop

at your worksite or your local unionmeeting.

Contact: Sue Keller -- sue@wfse.org or 1-800-562-6002.

Big wins at the University of Washington ...

A full-court press by
all levels of Local 1488 and
WFSE/AFSCME on Oct.
27 won an historic victory
against outsourcing the work
of Trades members at the University of Washington.
That agreement settled
about 34 grievances and 11
unfair labor practice complaints over illegal outsourcing. And it puts in place a
new contracting process that
gives our members a role on
decisions to contract out, not
just the impacts, Federation
Council Representative Sarah
Bright said.
The settlement comes
with $55,000 to divide among
affected trades members, she
said.
Illegal outsourcing has
now cost the UW $100,000
since June when members
won $45,000 in the Husky Stadium case.
This work belongs to
us, Bright said.
The kind of work being
outsourced included such
things as painting of parking
garages and refinishing floors,
she said.
The victory recognizes
the quality and expertise of
the workers and a sincere
opportunity for our members
to make suggestions to save
money, Bright said.

Page 4

The full-court press came

from Local 1488 members led
by President Paula Lukaszek
and WFSE/AFSCME council
representatives, labor advocates, organizers, attorneys,
and staff in contract compliance, strategic campaigns and
those dealing with the Public
Employment Relations Commission.
But the major credit goes
to the Trades members who
quickly blew the whistle on
the outsourcing and kept up
the ground-level monitoring.
Members paid attention
and alerted Paula, Bright
said. If members werent on
the watch, this wouldnt have
happened.
The grievances and ULP
complaints began dropping in
July 2014 and kept coming as
UW Trades members kept up
their outsourcing watch.
That also set in motion
a very meticulous, scientific
effort with a robust team of
expertise that tracked the outsourcing on big spreadsheets
with documentation filling
volumes of files.
That effort included an
early-on session one Sunday
this past December when Lukaszek, Bright and WFSE/AFSCME Contract Compliance
Manager Jeanine Livingston
built a matrix of the outsourc-

Bright (left) and Lukaszek in early tracking session that led to the $55,000
settlement of more than 34 challenges of illegal outsourcing at the UW.
ing targets on a big computer
screen at Federation Headquarters in Olympia.
But this wasnt the only
good news for UW members
last month:

Bad attendance policy

rescinded
On Oct. 26, WFSE/AFSCME and the UW settled a
group grievance over an attendance policy that insulted

the intelligence and dedication of Facilities Maintenance

and Construction members on
the main campus in Seattle.
At issue was a new attendance policy centering on
requesting vacations. The previous policy had worked well
since it began in 1995.
But last year, the union
caught wind that a new policy
might be proposed. Management denied it, then implemented a plan 11 days later
without bargaining.
The new policy required

WFSE/AFSCME Washington State Employee

more onerous advance notice

for vacation time, with any
slip-ups resulting in informal
coaching or factored into evaluations. Worse, some got their
leave requests returned with a
big orange U (for unscheduled) sprawled across it.
Two of the members
caught up in this were James
Grady and Stan Withers who
were simply trying to use accrued leave before their leave
balances hit the max and
theyd lose it.
This settlement wipes out
any detrimental statements
caused by the attendance policy from their personnel files,
rescinds the controversial
policy and commits to a new
policy bargained with the
union in the next 90 days.
So its a complete win
and really important to a lot
of these guys because it was
so insulting, Bright said.
Its a victory for all of
our members because hopefully it sets a precedent,
Grady said.
They say we dont deserve any more money so we
cant let them take the benefits that we do have, Withers said.

CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE

November 2015

EVERY VOICE COUNTS : Schedule your interview

Every Voice Counts events building -- schedule yours

Events around our Every
Voice Counts effort continue
and continue to build.
These events are about
hearing from 32,000 union
members because your ideas
and concerns are important.
Thats how we build a
stronger union.
Because standing together
is better than walking alone.
Because we stand for
working hard providing public services our families and
neighbors need; and banding
together to win better wages
and benefits that can sustain
our families, win improvements on the job and make
our work for Washingtons
taxpayers even more effective.
Every Voice Counts!
Thats why were AFSCME
Strong!

Recent Every Voice

Counts events
(clockwise from
top left): at Nov. 7
Policy Committees
in Seatac; Centralia; Western State
Hospital graveyard
shift; Longview.

United for our future, our families & To schedule your EVERY VOICE COUNTS Interview please contact your Union Rep, call
(800) 562-6002 or email Irenes@wfse.org.
the future of public services.

Strengthen continuum of care

WFSE/AFSCME on
Oct. 26 continued its coalition call for more resources
to care for developmentally
disabled residents of the
states four residential ha-

bilitation centers.
Julianne Moore, a member of Local 1326 at Yakima
Valley School in Selah, represented Federation members
before the Joint Legislative

and Executive Committee on

Aging and Disabilities. That
committee is tasked with developing specific options for
improving the quality of care
and safety for clients and staff
in all settings.
Moore said funding for
the developmental disabilities

program has declined since

2007 while the type of residents has changed dramatically, and staff leave over low
pay and high injuries.
All stakeholders share a
common goal, Moore said:
To see the residents of
RHCs reach independence

and live a happy and successful life. This can only

happen by ensuring an effective continuum of care is
available. The RHCs are a
critical part of that continuum providing stability to
families in need through the
state of Washington.

... including a major victory on outsourcing

Stan Withers (left) and Jamie Grady, the two UW Local 1488 members at the
center of the attendance policy victory.

Controversial UW Medical Center manager steps

down after members raise
continued concerns.
Ken Feilen on Oct. 27
stepped down as director of
operations and maintenance
at the University of Washington Medical Center and will
instead work part-time coordinating construction projects
where he will supervise no
Federation members.

Its unclear if theres

any connection, but Feilen
stepped down just 12 days
after UW Medical Center
members and the union met
with Patty Riley, the medical
centers senior associate administrator to voice continued
safety concerns under Feilens
watch.
We dont know if the two
events are connected but our
UW Medical Center members
report they feel safer now.

See examples of BAD outsourcing?

Go to our Outsourcing Watch
webpage: http://wfse.org/getinvolved/outsourcing-watch/
November 2015

Members air concerns with Harborview CEO

Local 1488 members at
Harborview Medical Center
on Oct. 29 aired their longterm concerns about treatment of co-workers at the
Seattle trauma hospital run by
the University of Washington.
The members met with
Harborview Chief Executive
Officer Paul Hayes after the
union demanded he undertake an open and sincere
dialogue with members.

The meeting comes in the

midst of negotiations between
the hospitals owners, King
County, and the UW over
renewal of the management
contract where the university
runs the hospital. For more
than 40 years, renewal of the
UWs 15-year contracts was
pro forma. But not this time
around, thanks to pressure
from Local 1488 and Harborview members.

WFSE/AFSCME Washington State Employee

Harborview members
who met with Hayes were
Bedriya Seid, Denzell Deloney, Clarisse Middleton,
Stephanie Swazer, John Frazier, Michael Abera, Tashia
Smith-Hankerson and Tom
Olsen. Local 1488 President
Paula Lukaszek, WFSE/AFSCME Statewide President
Sue Henricksen and WFSE/
AFSCME Executive Director
Greg Devereux joined them.

Page 5

THE FACES OF THE 72 MEMBERS OF YOUR NEW E-BOARD

Policy Committees elect 72-member Executive Board

WFSE/AFSCMEs 10 policy committees on Nov. 7 elected their allotted members to the unions Statewide Executive Board, the highest decision-making body
in the union between conventions. With the four statewide officers elected at the
convention in October, these 68 newly elected board members bring the board to
its full 72-member strength.
WFSE/AFSCMEs 10 current policy committees meet to discuss, debate and

set policy on issues unique to the employees within their jurisdiction.

Under the formula set out in the unions constitution, each of the 10 committees gets one board position for every 500 members (rounded to the next highest
500). No committee gets fewer than two seats on the board.
Delegates also elected their three policy committee officers: chair, vice-chair
and secretary.

PUBLIC SERVICE

Oseguera, Mould, Lentz and Abdulwahid.

EMPLOYMENT SECURITY
Public
Service Policy
Committee
officers:
Chair -- Gabriel
Oseguera, Local
1671, Interpreters,
Renton.
Vice-Chair
-- Fahad
Abdulwahid,
Local 1671,
Interpreters,
Covington.
Secretary -Tatiana Fields,
Local 1671,
Interpreters,
Spokane.

Bird, Lugo, Bernethy and Murphy.

Board members elected from the Employment Security Policy Committee:
Ginger Bernethy, Local 443, Olympia; Joanne Bird, Local 443, Olympia; and
Rosanna Lugo, Local 396, Walla Walla.

Members elected from the Public Service Policy

Committee: Tami Lentz, Local 1671, Snohomish; and
Leroy Mould, Local 1671, Interpreters, Olympia.

Employment Security Policy Committee officers: Chair - Ginger Bernethy,

Local 443, Olympia; Vice-Chair -- Rosanna Lugo, Local 396, Walla Walla; and
Secretary -- Terry Murphy, Local 1060, Mount Vernon.

INSTITUTIONS OF
HIGHER EDUCATION
From left: Crowley, Halverson, Phipps, Pethe, Echerd, Lukaszek, Smith-Hankerson, Davenhall, Theard, Davenport, Franco, Jensen and Walker.
Elected to the board from the Institutions of Higher Education Policy Committee: Quincy Burns, Local 931, Eastern Washington University, Cheney; Lin
Crowley, Local 443, The Evergreen State College, Olympia; Joe Davenport, Local 1488, University of Washington, Seattle; Vicki Echerd, Local 1400, Lower
Columbia College, Longview; Rodolfo Franco, Local 304, Seattle College; Rick Halverson, Local 1221, Community Colleges of Spokane; Skip Jensen, Local 330,
Central Washington University, Ellensburg; Paula Lukaszek, Local 1488, University of Washington, Seattle; Ty Pethe, Local 304, Seattle College; Max Phipps,
Local 1020, Everett Community College; Angie Simpson, Local 53, Tacoma Community College; Tashia Smith-Hankerson, Local 1488, University of Washington,
Seattle; Claude Theard, Local 1488, University of Washington, Seattle; and Craig Walker, Local 931, Eastern Washington University, Cheney.
Institutions of Higher Education Policy Committee officers: Chair - Craig Walker, Local 931, Eastern Washington University, Cheney; Vice-Chair -- Matthew
Davenhall, Local 304, Seattle College; and Secretary -- Kathleen Warren, Local 931, Eastern Washington University, Cheney.

LABOR & INDUSTRIES

Elected to the board from the Labor and
Industries Policy Committee: Thornton
Alberg, Local 443, Tumwater; Imelda Ang,
Local 443, Tumwater; Stacy Copland,
Local 1253, Kennewick; and Carmyn
Shute, Local 443, Tumwater.

From left: Ang,

Alberg, Shute and
Copland.

Page 4

WFSE/AFSCME Washington State Employee

L&I Policy Committee Policy Committee officers: Chair - DeFrance Clarke, Local 443; Vice
Chair - Ken Grubb Local 443, Tumwater; and
Secretary -- Imelda Ang, Local 443, Tumwater.

From left: L&I Policy Committee Chair DeFrance Clarke and

Secretary Imelda Ang.

November 2015

THE FACES OF THE 72 MEMBERS OF YOUR NEW E-BOARD

CORRECTIONS

From left (being sworn

in by WFSE/AFSCME President Sue
Henricksen): Sacks,
Hertzog, Stelovich,
Womack, Moore,
Yates, Hamel and
Murphy.

From left: Copland, Oglesby, Rogers and DeBay.

Members elected from the Corrections
Policy Committee: Bill Copland, Local 1253,
Community Corrections, Tri-Cities; Rick DeBay,
Local 1060, Bellingham; and Alice Rogers, Local
1253, Community Corrections, Tri-Cities.
Corrections Policy Committee officers:
Chair - Jon Oglesby, Local 1221, Spokane; Vice
Chair - Rick DeBay, Local 1060, Bellingham.

INSTITUTIONS
Board members elected from the Institutions Policy Committee: Dolly Adeyemi, Local 341, Fircrest
School, Shoreline; Craig Gibelyou, Local 793, Western State Hospital, Lakewood; Gabe Hall, Local 862,
Green Hill School, Chehalis; Kevin Hamel, Local 341, Fircrest School, Shoreline; Rick Hertzog, Local
793, Western State Hospital, Lakewood; Lyn Hofland, Local 482, Veterans Home, Retsil; Lee Malinda,
Local 573, Lakeland Village, Medical Lake; Julianne Moore, Local 1326, Yakima Valley School, Selah;
Mike Murphy, Local 491, Rainier School, Buckley; Eliga Sacks, Local 793, Special Commitment Center,
McNeil Island; Michele Stelovich, Local 1060, DD Field Services, Bellingham; Diane Womack, Local
782, Eastern State Hospital, Medical Lake; and Steven Yates, Local 491, Rainier School, Buckley.
Institutions Policy Committee officers: Chair - Michele Stelovich, Local 1060, Bellingham; Vice Chair Lyn Hofland, Retsil, Local 482; Secretary - Zochershea Butler, Local 491, Rainier School, Buckley.

NATURAL RESOURCES

TRANSPORTATION

From left: Holbrook, Felton, Doremus, Guilfoil, Pickett, Fraidenburg and Hoyle-Dodson.

Elected from the Natural Resources Policy Committee: Llyn Doremus, Local 1221,
Ecology, Spokane; Denis Felton, Local 1466, Parks, Coulee City; Steve Fraidenburg,
Local 443, Natural Resources, Olympia; Elena Guilfoil, Local 872, Ecology, Lacey; and
Eddie Holbrook, Local 1253, Ecology, Tri-Cities.
Natural Resources Policy Committee officers: Chair - Paul Pickett, Local 872, Ecology, Lacey; Vice-Chair -- Guy Hoyle-Dodson, Local 872, Ecology, Lacey; and Secretary
-- Llyn Doremus, Local 1221, Ecology, Spokane.

From left: Guerrero, Flue, Fries, Rogers, Willner and Schneider.

Elected from the Transportation Policy Committee: Larry
Flue, Local 378, Seattle; Steve Fries, Local 1299, Moses Lake;
Roberto Guerrero, Local 1299, Othello; Kate Rogers, Local 1060,
Greenbank; and Georgina Willner, Local 443, Olympia.

Transportation Policy Committee officers: Chair - Larry Flue, Local 378, Seattle; Vice-Chair -- Sam Schnieder, Local 1299, George;
and Secretary -- Georgina Willner, Local 443, Olympia.

Elected from Miscellaneous: Wendy Conway, Local 443,

Office of the Insurance Commissioner, Olympia; Linda
Erickson, Local 443, Health Care Authority, Olympia; Ingrid
Hansen, Local 443, Health, Olympia; Scott Hone, Local 1225,
School for the Blind, Vancouver; Jeff Paulsen, Local 443,
Consolidated Technology Services, Olympia; Heather Pyles,
Local 313, Washington State Patrol Crime Lab, Vancouver;
and Brooks Salazar, Local 304, Board of Industrial Insurance
Appeals, Seattle. (An eighth seat is vacant.)
Miscellaneous Policy Committee Officers: Chair - Ingrid
Hansen, Local 443, Health, Tumwater; Vice-Chair -- Jeff
Paulsen, Local 443, Consolidated Technology Services, Olympia; and Secretary -- Linda Erickson, Local 443, Health Care
Authority, Olympia.

MISCELLANEOUS

From left: Hone, Erickson,

Paulsen, Hansen, Conway
and Pyles.

DSHS HUMAN SERVICES

Human Services Policy Committee
officers: Chair - Adam Draude, Local 443, Olympia; Vice-Chair -- Shay
Kaushagen, Local 313, Vancouver;
and Secretary -- Brenna Schimpf,
Local 948, Everett.

From left: Nelson, Allen, Sills, Fosty-Wilson, Schimpf, Draude, English, Fossum, Hughes, Tilton, Loper, Rodriguez and Kaushagen.
Elected from Human Services: Kevin Allen, Local 843, Seattle; Adam Draude, Local 443, Olympia; Cynthia English, Local 53, Tacoma; Shay Kaushagen,
Local 313, Vancouver; Tim Hughes, Local 313, Vancouver; Steve Fossum, Local 443, Olympia; Michele Loper, Local 313, Vancouver; Katie Nelson, Local 443,
Olympia; Addie Rodriguez, Local 1326, Yakima; Brenna Schimpf, Local 948, Everett; Debbie Sills, Local 1326, Yakima; Ed Tilton, Local 862, Centralia; Carol
Van Arnam, Local 1299, Wenatchee; and Tracy (Fosty) Wilson, Local 1060, Bellingham.

November 2015

WFSE/AFSCME Washington State Employee

Page 7

EVERY VOICE COUNTS: Members in action

Local 53 Community Corrections member
lauded for arresting big-time drug dealer

TACOMA A state
Department of Correc-

tions specialist, assigned to

the FBIs South Sound Task
Force, arrested a wanted drug
dealer and confiscated more
than $100,000 in cash and
five pounds of methamphetamine at a residential duplex
last week.
Officer Thomas Grabski
(WFSE/AFSCME Local 53 in
Pierce County) got a tip last
month that Robert Henrickson, a wanted felon, was storing and selling large amounts
of drugs. After tracking down

Community Response
Unit Specialist
Thomas Grabski
(photo courtesy DOC)

MORE ONLINE

Our Community Corrections members make a

difference and keep us safe
every day.
Now comes the story of
Local 53 member Thomas
Grabski.
We cant say it any better than this Department of
Corrections Oct. 6 post from
DOC Press Secretary Andrew Garber:

his location in Tacoma, and

watching him for a few days
to make sure thats where
he lived, Grabski and several other officers arrested
Henrickson when he walked
outside his home this past
Thursday night.

Read more about

this heroic episode
at: http://www.
doc.wa.gov/news/
stories/2015/100615Grabski-drug-bust.asp

New officers at WSU Local 1066

Local 862 members and allies present food bank donation to DSHS Secretary Kevin Quigley. From left: Karla Miles, Patti
Stoumbaugh, Karen Mork (presenting check), Quigley, Lesona Hartman and Sheila Brooks.

Chehalis/Centralia Local 862 feeds hungry neighbors

Local 862 in the Lewis
County communities in and
around Chehalis and Centralia has made sure more
of their neighbors wont go
hungry.
The local on Oct. 22 con-

tributed $500 to the DSHS

Everyone Eats Tour as part
of this years Combined Fund
Drive campaign.
The CFD will forward
the Local 862 donation to the
Lewis County Food Bank.

DSHS Secretary Kevin

Quigley visited the local
DSHS office in the Lewis
County Mall, with turnout
from members in DSHS, Employment Security and Corrections.

Green River College members speak up together

Green River College custodians standing strong.

A group of Local 304
custodians at Green River
College in Auburn working
people like the rest of us who
just want to get paid for the
work they do continue to
speak together.
In this case, when college
administrators changed the
rules over their work shifts.

Over the summer Green

River College told third shift
custodians that they were
changing the rules and intended to get rid of their shift
(except for two positions) and
that theyd need to volunteer for first or second shift.
Management and human resources tried to do this

without a demand to bargain

the formal name for simply
allowing workers to speak up
together. When asked about
it at their union-management
meeting, the facilities director
said that all the custodians
had already volunteered and
that it was taken care of.
We knew this didnt

WFSE/AFSCME President Sue Henricksen swears in new officers at Washington State University Local 1066 Oct. 7 in Pullman. From left: President Derek
Jones, Secretary Eric Needham and Treasurer Lance Mitchell.

SHOP STEWARD CORNER

The WFSE/AFSCME Shop Steward Committee is asking shop
stewards what ideas they have to add to the unions current webbased grievance tracking system. E-mail ideas to Jean Backman
at jeanb@wfse.org.

sound right so we started

meeting with third shift custodians, said WFSE/AFSCME
Council Representative Kaite
Mark. We heard stories from
members about how catastrophic this change will be
to their personal lives. Most
of our members on this shift
work second jobs and/or care
for their children and grandchildren during the day.
Because every voice counts,
the shift change didnt sit well
with these custodians.
Members drafted and
signed a petition to retain the
third shift and they shared
personal stories about why
this will be a hardship at the
demand to bargain meeting,
Mark said.
Six out of the nine affected custodians came to the
demand to bargain meeting
after working a full shift, only

to go back to work later that

day, she said. The dedication and hard work put in by
our members around this is
absolutely amazing.
Unfortunately, the employer
was not willing to retain the
third shift, and showed little
to no empathy around their
employees personal stories of
hardship in any shift change,
Mark said.
While we did not win on
this, members got mobilized
and active, she said. They
want to spread the word
about what is happening
and bring light to the fact the
Green River administration
is continuously ignoring the
voices of their employees and
students.
These Green River custodians are strong. But speaking up together as a union,
theyre stronger.

New officers elected at Local 843

State Human Services Local 843 (King County) on Oct. 14
elected its new officers for the next year:
President Margaret McDonald; Vice President Fred Lappert; Secretary-Treasurer Glenda Cummins; Recording
Secretary Jennifer Alley; Executive Board Gregg Gunther, Lynnette Campbell, Anne Sacquitne, Jacquie JonesWalsh, Thais Marbles; Trustee Rhonda Buchanan.

Page 8

New Local 843 officers being sworn in by WFSE/AFSCMEs Anne-Marie Cavanaugh.

WFSE/AFSCME Washington State Employee

November 2015