This is the Federation Hotline updated Jan. 18.
The state Senate did not vote on the state Capital Construction Budget (SB 6090) Wednesday night. The Senate will be in session Thursday night.
Here’s what else happened today on our priority issues in the Legislature:
Bill would help relieve Children’s social workers of student debt
On the airwaves and in the halls of the Legislature, WFSE/AFSCME social worker members beat the drum for a program to help these dedicated workers pay off the crushing student loan debt they took on to get the specialized degrees.
The bottom line is a life dedicated to helping abused and neglected children shouldn’t leave social workers in debt.
Local 1221 member Sandy Hilzendeger told the Washington News Service in a radio interview carried by stations across the state today that help with their student debt would entice more young people into the social work field and keep good state social workers from leaving. The annual turnover rate is more than 20 percent.
“Whether they put food on the table for their families, they have that little bit of extra to spend on their own kids,” she said. “For the newer folks, it is a much larger burden for them.”
In Olympia, Local 843 CA Social Workers Charles Loeffler, Nolan Manion and Jeremy Streck urged lawmakers in the Senate Higher Education and Workforce Development Committee to support recruitment and retention of CA social workers by passing SB 6259, the bill that would create the social work professional loan repayment program. Read their moving testimony at: https://wfse.org/news/ca-sws-voice-support-sb-6259
And to show their appreciation to the bill’s sponsor, Sen. Kevin Ranker of the 40th Dist., the three social workers presented him with a huge thank you card signed by a slew of their colleagues.
The committee is scheduled to vote on SB 6259 next Tuesday, Jan. 23.
WFSE/AFSCME’s Stanley urges passage of part-timers bill
WFSE/AFSCME Secretary Tracy Stanley urged senators today (Jan. 18) to pass a bill that would leave no question about part-time employees.
SB 6184 would add part-time state employees to state civil service. Many part-time groups are already in; SB 6184 would make it wall-to-wall.
Stanley, who works at Lower Columbia College in Longview and is a member of Local 1400, told the Senate Labor and Commerce Committee of the harm caused by exempting employees from the state civil service law.
“Not only does exempting these employees from civil service law exclude them from the rights of just cause, the harm to the state comes at a financial burden to state resources,” Stanley said.
“Hiring multiple part-time employees as opposed to fewer full-time employees creates a situation where the state of Washington’s agencies and institutions become a training ground for other employers.”
Many part-timers get the training and experience – and then seek out higher-paying full-time jobs, she said. That contradicts the state’s value of recruiting and retaining good state employees, she said.
Interpreter services bill gets good hearing
Local 1671 Interpreters United members showed support for the bill (SB 6245) to expand the state’s successful interpreter procurement system for medical Interpreters to other high-demand agencies like Labor and Industries.
“Please pass this bill and let’s save a lot of money,” Local 1671 member Milena Waldron told the Senate Labor and Commerce Committee today (Jan. 18).
That’s it for now.
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