Seattle Kraken Contract
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Seattle Kraken Contract
Effective: 08/01/2024 - 08/31/2026
Rep: Aaron Bailey
What We Won Together in Our Last Contract—These Gains Didn’t Happen by Accident
Our contract reflects what workers can accomplish when we come together and negotiate collectively. We secured higher wages, guaranteed premiums, predictable wage increases, new bonuses, and benefits that workers can count on.
These aren’t just words on paper. They’re improvements that affect our paychecks, our time with family, our education, and our future.
Raised Wages to $21 an Hour
Our last contract secured wages of up to $21 per hour, compared with Seattle’s $19.97 minimum wage at the time. Guaranteed yearly increases have brought that up to $22.28 currently.
That means negotiated wages above the local minimum wage benchmark—not just the minimum required by law.
A Guaranteed Keyholder Premium
We secured a guarantee that the Keyholder premium would be at least $3 per hour.
Workers taking on keyholder responsibilities deserve compensation for that added responsibility. Our contract puts a minimum premium in writing.
Guaranteed Wage Increases Every September
We secured annual wage increases every September that keep up with inflation, as provided by our contract.
Predictable increases matter. They give workers a contractual wage-increase commitment instead of leaving raises entirely to the employer’s discretion.
A Ratification Bonus
We secured a ratification bonus as part of our negotiated agreement.
This was a direct, tangible benefit tied to the contract workers approved.
Bonuses for Working Kraken Home Games
We established a bonus system based on the percentage of Seattle Kraken home games worked at Climate Pledge Arena.
The system recognizes workers who cover 25%, 50%, 75%, or 100% of home games.
Our contract creates a structured way to earn bonuses based on game coverage, with the details governed by the agreement.
Paid Holidays Even When We Don’t Work
We secured paid holidays for eligible workers even when they don’t work on those holidays, according to the contract’s terms.
Time off shouldn’t automatically mean losing holiday pay. This benefit provides compensation when a covered holiday falls on a day we don’t work.
Better Bereavement Leave
We improved bereavement leave from one day to three days.
When a loved one dies, workers need time to grieve, make arrangements, and be with family. Our contract provides more time during a difficult moment.
A Guaranteed $50 Monthly ORCA Card Benefit
We secured a guarantee of $50 per month toward an ORCA Card.
Importantly, this benefit is written into our contract. The employer cannot simply take away a contractually guaranteed benefit at its discretion while the contractual protection applies.
And we can continue to advocate for improvements through future negotiations.
Up to $2,000 a Year in Education Assistance for Every Bargaining-Unit Member
We secured eligibility for every bargaining-unit member to receive up to $2,000 per year for tuition assistance or other eligible education-related expenses, subject to the program’s terms.
Before our contract, the employer was choosing who received this benefit. We changed that by establishing eligibility for every member of the bargaining unit.
That is a meaningful difference: access is no longer supposed to depend on being individually selected by management. Every eligible member has access to the negotiated benefit under its terms.
What These Wins Mean for Us
Look at what we secured together:
Higher wages.
A guaranteed Keyholder premium.
Annual September wage increases tied to inflation.
A ratification bonus.
Bonuses for working Kraken home games.
Paid holidays when we don’t work them.
Three days of bereavement leave instead of one.
A guaranteed $50 monthly ORCA Card benefit.
Equal eligibility for up to $2,000 per year in education assistance.
Each of these provisions represents a negotiated standard workers can point to in their contract. We didn’t just ask for improvements. We negotiated commitments.
Our Contract Is a Foundation, Not a Finish Line
Winning a benefit is important. Protecting it and improving it are important, too. Our contract gives us written standards to refer to, procedures for addressing violations, and a foundation for future negotiations.
We can continue to push for better wages, stronger benefits, and fairer working conditions. We can also hold the employer accountable to the commitments already made.
Know what we won. Know what your contract guarantees. And know that our next improvements start with workers standing together.
What could be at risk if we decertify our union?
1. Guaranteed wage increases
Your contract guarantee annual September increases that matched or exceed inflation. Without union representation, those contractual guarantees could be lost, and workers would lose the union’s role in negotiating future guaranteed increases. Future raises would not be assured by a successor union contract
2. The $3-per-hour Key holder premium
This is a negotiated minimum premium. Decertification would not necessarily erase it immediately, but it could put future protection of the premium at risk, depending on the agreement’s status and applicable law.
3. The $50 monthly ORCA Card benefit
Workers could lose the union’s ability to negotiate improvements to this benefit as part of a successor contract. The existing contractual guarantee does not necessarily vanish immediately upon decertification.
4. Up to $2,000 per year in education assistance
Your contract made every bargaining-unit member eligible under the program’s terms, rather than leaving access to management’s individual selection. Workers risk losing the ability to negotiate that guarantee in future agreements.
5. Paid holidays and three days of bereavement leave
These are important quality-of-life protections. Without a recognized union negotiating future contracts, workers would lose a formal mechanism for bargaining to preserve or improve them.
6. Bonuses and negotiated wage standards
The ratification bonus, Kraken home-game bonus system, and negotiated wage rates are concrete contract wins. Their immediate status depends on the agreement and applicable law, but future versions and improvements would no longer be negotiated by the decertified union.
7. Grievances, arbitration, and collective representation
A union helps enforce the contract through formal grievance procedures and, where provided, arbitration. Decertification can affect the union’s ability to pursue disputes and represent workers collectively. Employees would still retain applicable legal rights, including protections against unlawful discrimination and certain forms of retaliation.
These are negotiated contract benefits—not just requests or hopes.
What changes if we decertify our union?
If our union is decertified, we lose our union’s status as our collective bargaining representative. That means that our bargaining team can no longer negotiate our next contract on behalf of the bargaining unit.
Our current contract does not necessarily disappear overnight. But our existing contract would no longer provide the same legally enforceable protections, and we would lose our union’s ability to negotiate future wage increases, protect existing benefits in a successor agreement, and improve our working conditions through collective bargaining.
Without our union, the employer has nearly complete control over our working conditions.
What about our rights?
Decertification does not erase every workplace right. Applicable wage laws, anti-discrimination protections, safety requirements, and other legal protections may continue to apply.
But legal minimums are not the same as the additional benefits and protections we have negotiated in our contract.
Our future is worth understanding.
Before making a decision, look at what we have won, what our contract guarantees, and what we want to improve next.
Could we negotiate a higher ORCA benefit? Better wages? Stronger education assistance?
Those are issues we can continue to bring to the bargaining table while we have recognized union representation.
Know what we have. Understand what could change. Make an informed decision about our future.
Talk to your bargaining team members: Kota Owens and Thomas Tumbokon or your Union Rep Aaron Bailey at 206-436-6631 Questions about Dues? Call 206-436-6594
Dues FAQ for BDA workers at Climate Pledge Arena
The monthly dues rate for seasonal retail workers is $24
The initiation fee for new members is $100
The initiation fee is deducted in $25 increments until paid in full
New members can receive a $50 credit toward their initiation fee if they attend a new member meeting within 6 months of their hire date. Sign up for a New Member Meeting here: ufcw3000.org/new-members
The employer will deduct dues, initiation fees and voluntary political contributions for those who have authorized deductions by filling out the Membership Application
Payroll makes deductions on the last paycheck each month.
Members can contact Stetson Curtis in Membership Services with any dues related issues at 206-436-6594
For questions concerning your contract, reach out to your Union Rep Aaron Bailey 206-436-6631
