We need Public-service unions to bargain in the open

Please open the closed door, eliminate the elitist approach.

The Seattle Education Association recently threatened a strike after getting a 10.5 percent pay raise last year. The Kennewick teachers union, likewise, has disrupted the start of school for children with its pay demands. Meanwhile, teachers in Toutle Lake School District have blocked the state’s “paramount duty” to education children because of their pay demands this year despite a 17 percent raise last year.

Teachers are also threatening a strike against the families of Ellensburg and LaCenter.
What do they want? How does it impact other services the districts provide? What other tradeoffs are offered at the bargaining table?

Individuals, families, taxpayers, other district employees and even union members commonly do not know given the absurd custom of making these critical budget-busting decisions in behind closed doors.

But bargaining reaches beyond just salaries and budget priorities.

The Seattle Education Association has previously negotiated in favor of more than 100 individuals receiving a $2,500 stipend to be part of some schools’ “Racial Equity Teams.” Other districts negotiate away the ability of the district to get community volunteer help with projects or activities.

Some negotiate to add hurdles to parent visits to their children’s classrooms.

Any school board could enlist the public to help consider the full ramifications of unreasonable bargaining table demands by adopting a transparency policy to allow the observation, livestreaming or immediate document disclosure of proceedings.

In the Pullman School District, WEA and board representatives have negotiated their teachers’ union contract in the open, and the sky didn’t fall.

In Oregon, where observed bargaining is the law, the school directors’ association representative reports that openness starts bargaining closer to compromise since extremes and stalling tactics are harder to explain to the public.

Further, the union tactic of deceiving the public about the elements of dispute and vilifying a district leadership team are removed by adding transparency – any bad actors on the management team are on display, but so are misstatements by the union.

The Washington Education Association has made opposition to a transparency policy a litmus test for its support of school board candidates. In this election cycle, half of the school board positions in the state are up for election.

Among the questions to ask school board candidates is what they think about permitting observed or livestreamed bargaining.

Source for this article is the Freedom Foundation

News this week in Olympia

Sen. Barbara Bailey announced her retirement from the State Senate after 16 years of service

Senator Barbara Bailey (R-Oak Harbor) announced her retirement from the State Senate in a letter to Gov. Jay Inslee on August 16. Sen. Bailey served in the Legislature for 16 years in both the House and the Senate. She will officially step down on September 30.

In her letter to Gov. Inslee, she said that she is hoping to spend more quality time with her family and church and work with her husband on projects and ventures important to them.

Oak Harbor Chamber of Commerce director to seek appointment to the State Senate

Christine Cribb, the Executive Director of the Oak Harbor Chamber of Commerce announced that she intends to seek the appointment to the State Senate upon Sen. Bailey’s retirement on September 30.  She says she was encouraged to seek the appointment by Sen. Bailey.

Cribb has led the Oak Harbor chamber for five years and previously served on the Oak Harbor school board. The Republican PCOs in Island, Skagit, and Snohomish counties will choose three people to be submitted to the Island and Skagit county commissioners and the Snohomish County Council who will officially appoint someone to fill the seat. That person will face Democrat Island County Commissioner Helen Price Johnson, among other potential challengers, in the 2020 election.

Gov. Jay Inslee ends his vanity presidential run and announces he will seek a third term as governor

After failing to get any traction in his vanity run for president, Gov. Inslee finally threw in the towel telling MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow, “It’s become clear I’m not going to be carrying the ball — I’m not going to be president, so I’m withdrawing tonight from the race.”

He returned home to Washington and within hours announced his intention to run for a third term as governor. By running again he also effectively ended the campaigns or potential campaigns of scores of Democrats who were lining up to run to succeed him or fill vacancies created by those who would.

"Thank you, Gov. Inslee, but it’s time to let others govern"

The Seattle Times editorial board says that Gov. Inslee should reconsider his decision to run for a nearly unprecedented third term as governor. The noted, “If Inslee relinquished the scepter, it would have a cascading effect on the political organization chart. The current state attorney general, lands commissioner and King County executive all would be gubernatorial candidates. That would spur healthy competition, new policy debates and a system refresh at multiple levels of government.”

As evidenced by his vanity run for the White House, this isn’t about the party but about Inslee himself. They ended by thanking Inslee for his service but saying, “but now it’s time to give others a turn.”

Sen. Mark Schoesler encourages Washingtonians to attend their local fairs

Senate Republican Leader Mark Schoesler penned a piece for the Washington AG Network encouraging people to attend their local fairs.

Schoesler, a wheat farmer himself, says, “Fairs are part of our rich agricultural heritage, with great entertainment and learning opportunities that are good for the entire family.” He notes that while fairs are always a fun time, they also educate attendees about farming and ranching.