Unionized community college and state government employees represented by the Washington Public Employees Association have voted to reject the tentative agreement that was reached between the Washington Public Employees Association and the Washington state government. The Washington Public Employees Association represents workers at all 13 community colleges in the state, the Department of Revenue, the Department of Natural Resources, and other state agencies. The failure to ratify the tentative contract comes as unionized workers represented by the Washington Federation of State Employees voted in favor of the collective bargaining agreement with the state. The Washington Federation of State Employees represents public service, higher education, and other state government employees, and the contract between the Washington Federation of State Employees and the Washington state government had very similar terms to the contract that the Washington Public Employees Association rejected. There is a possibility that the rejected contract will be implemented if the two parties cannot reach a new agreement, due to occurring after the governor’s budget has been submitted.
See "Washington Public Employees Association rejects tentative agreement while the Washington Federation of State Employees ratified a similar contract", Jerry Cornfield, Washington State Standard, October 10, 2024