Greetings to our fantastic King County members!

We can’t believe how quickly (and yet somehow slowly?) the year has passed. That being said, your Union has been working hard on your behalf to advocate, protect and advance the interests of our membership across the many sectors and industries that we represent. 

In addition to dealing with the many impacts facing our members due to the pandemic, in King County we have been working diligently to negotiate strong contracts, support our members working onsite and teleworking and adjust to the ever-changing economic and political climate and resulting broader implications to public service.

We would be remiss if we didn’t extend our appreciation for the work that you do and have done through this tenuous time as well as continued engagement with the union to make sure that we stay strong and united. 

We have a few general items we would like to update you on specifically, but please don’t hesitate to reach out to your Union Representative or Shop Steward for a deeper dive:

CONTRACT NEGOTIATIONS

Just a reminder that 2021 is an Evergreen year and so all Labor Agreements are automatically extended through the year.  We are still in active negotiations for a successor to the Master Labor Agreement as well as negotiating your small-table appendix agreements.  It is still unclear as to whether there will be a GWI for 2021, but we feel optimistic about our ability to achieve wage increases for future years.  Our goal on the Coalition-level and within our individual bargaining units has been to preserve the highest standard of contract language across the board as well as pressing forward with our proposals on general wage increases, telework/stipends, flex schedules and hazard pay, among other items identified by our membership.

TEAMSTERS LIFE INSURANCE

Did you know you have a life insurance plan that is free to you as a union member?  All active dues-paying members in good standing receive a FREE $5,000 member/$2000 spousal life insurance benefit. If you haven’t recently, we’d like to encourage you to please update your beneficiary information. 

HRA/VEBA

We held a series of informational meetings last month regarding the King County HRA/VEBA program.  Our plan is to conduct a vote about participation in this plan by the end of June.  Stay tuned as we will be reaching out to you directly to engage in this process.  We will be voting any member that is eligible for retirement within the next 5 years.  More information will be forthcoming, but please visit HRA VEBA - King County if you want to learn more.

MEMBERSHIP MEETING

Reminder that our next virtual membership meeting is this Thursday! To register, please click on the link below:

REGISTER HERE!

CHILDCARE SUBSIDY

As you may be aware, the Coalition has has achieved a COVID-19 Child Care Reimbursement Program to help our members with child care expenses incurred during the 2020-2021 school year. Our members are able to submit receipts for childcare expenses incurred between Sept. 1, 2020, and June 30, 2021. The amount of reimbursement members may receive will vary by the member’s King County income and the number of children the member has. Members who earn lower salaries or wages are eligible to receive higher payments, up to the program maximum of $5,000 per child. Covered expenses include payments to both licensed and unlicensed child care providers, including pre-schools, school-age programs, nannies, au pairs, tutors, extended family (such as an aunt, uncle or grandparent), friend, or neighbor. Funds are still available so please contact the King County Benefits Team at KC Benefits or 206-684-1556.

COME PAINT TACOMA BEAUTIFUL!

Over the years, Teamsters 117 have painted 3 houses through the Paint Tacoma Beautiful project, and now we are excited to revive it to paint a house of a person in need this summer! Join us to lend a helping hand and connect with the community and members in a special way! 😄

VOLUNTEER HERE!

This link will take you to complete 2 registration forms: one is ours and one is on Associated Ministries site with whom we are partnering for this event. The prep work is scheduled for Monday, June 7 and our paint days are over the weekend June 11 to 13.

Painting a house is multi-day project, and it works best when many hands are involved. You can pick a morning or afternoon shift or hang out for the entire day and we’ll have lunch together!