Local 1909 union accuses Town of Friday Harbor of unfair labor practices – Town responds (updated)
ORIGINAL: Friday, February 14, 2025 @4:01 p.m.
UPDATED: Saturday, February 15, 2025 @9:28 a.m. (quote from Denice Kulseth added)
by Jeff Noedel
In a press statement today, Guild of the Pacific Northwest Local 1909 leaders accused the Town of Friday Harbor of bad faith bargaining. The union claims that Town Administrator Denice Kulseth “has employed a strategy to intentionally frustrate and delay bargaining.” The statement adds, “The Guild has also alleged that the Town Administrator has interfered with workers’ rights to engage in protected activities.”
The union is seeking to move the case into arbitration under the auspices of the Public Employment Relations Commission (PERC), a Washington State agency that has jurisdiction over public sector labor relations and collective bargaining. PERC provides mediation services at no cost.
In response, Kulseth wrote to SanJuans.Today, “This is nothing but a publicity stunt for PNWE. They battled AFSCME for years to gain control over our bargaining unit, and you can tell by the distribution list for their press release that it’s meant to garner attention in Tacoma, Seattle, and Bellingham where they hope to get a foothold. This is nothing but marketing. Plain and simple.”
In a written statement released hours later today and signed by Mayor Ray Jackson and all five Town Council members, the Town leaders stated, “While negotiations are generally private, the union recently opened negotiations to the public. It is important for our residents, businesses, taxpayers, and ratepayers to understand the Town’s perspective, and what is at issue in reaching a fair contract.”
“The Town values our workforce,” the statement continued. “We care about them, their families, their work life and home life balance. We also care about the people working and living in town, many of whom are living on less than the median household income. We care about the future residents of the affordable housing developments being built here, the hardworking people trying to run a small business here, and the vitality of this entire community.”
In this afternoon’s statement, the Town detailed the offer it has put forth to the union membership: “The Town has offered our employees a yearly 5.72% wage increase for the next three years in the form of an annual 3.72% wage increase dependent on satisfactory job performance, plus an annual 2% cost of living adjustment. The Town will continue to pay 100% of every employee’s healthcare premiums, even as premiums have increased 7.3% over last year and will likely increase in the future.”
The full February 14 statement of the Town is here.
The full February 14 statement of the 1909 union is here.
PREVIOUS SanJuans.Today coverage:
February 5, 2025: Fair pay? Here’s what the Town of Friday Harbor pays its unionized employees now
January 24, 2025: Union lawyer and iron-worker use their 3 minutes in ‘public comments’ to advocate for better contract for Town workers
