Over 100 workers have signed a petition calling for management to immediately address the staffing crisis at the juvenile detention center.
Dangerous conditions at the Echo Glen Children’s Center made headlines yet again after seven residents assaulted a staff member and broke out of custody on Saturday, May 27.
After four hours of hiding in the bathroom, a group of residents assaulted a staff member, giving her a concussion, and used the employee’s personal vehicle to escape Echo Glen.
For years, staff members have been vocal about the kind of safety shortfalls that allowed this incident to happen. In April 2022 a similar escape happened, orchestrated by one of the youths that was involved in Saturday’s escape.
Concerns from staff that could have stopped the breakout were ignored by management. Echo Glen received a call on Friday night from a resident’s mother warning that a breakout was imminent.
WFSE President Mike Yestramski said DCYF workers across Washington have been spoken up for decades about the degrading safety conditions for residents and workers in 24/7 facilities.
Yestramski, Hamel, and Fueston walk to the Echo Glen parking lot. Despite leadership claiming that vehicles are not allowed on-campus for resident and staff safety, an unfenced path in clear sight of the entrance leads to the staff parking lot.
On Wednesday, Yestramski, along with Kevin Hamel, Local 341 President, and Ashley Fueston, WFSE Vice President, traveled to Echo Glen to show support for workers after the attack. Yestramski called for DCYF Secretary Ross Hunter to do anything to help 24/7 facilities in Washington.
Yestramski said that calls for transparency and support from DCYF leadership, especially Secretary Hunter, have been ignored. Leadership’s failings are leading to an increase in violent incidents statewide in these facilities.
There simply aren’t enough workers to handle the intense, constant need of residents at the center. Stagnant hiring, partially because of the low wages at Echo Glen, leads to chronic understaffing. Not only do staff feel overwhelmed and unable to interact with residents, but they are also unable to engage residents in enriching programming that would benefit the youth.
Echo Glen has seen six superintendents in the last two years, leading to unstable management of the facility and lack of follow through on staff concerns as leadership changes.
WFSE has negotiated a record-setting compensation package in workers’ 2023-25 contract and is hopeful that this will encourage more applicants and improve staffing conditions at 24/7 institutions. All onsite workers at Echo Glen will receive a 12 percent raise over the two-year contract. Other job classes in the facility will also receive job-class specific increases.
Negotiations occurred amid a 20-year staffing crisis. In 20 years, Washington state’s population has increased 26 percent but the state employee headcount has only increased 5 percent. The direst staffing shortages are in 24/7 institutions like Echo Glen.
Demands from employees include transparency and accountability from management as well as public acknowledgement that the facility is in a crisis. Staff hope that management will view this incident as a wakeup call to change in interest of staff and resident safety.
