SEATTLE – Today the Seattle City Council passed Mayor Katie Wilson’s Fair Pricing and Transparency ordinance with no corporate amendments that open the door to algorithmic pricing or weaken enforcement, making Seattle home to the strongest ban on surveillance pricing in the country.
The employer joined us for two bargaining sessions on September 17 and 18. They have hired a new legal counsel who seemingly is trying to set a different, more collaborative tone with our union. We reached Tentative Agreements on several topics, including an Artificial Intelligence Memorandum of Understanding and an Inclusion Memorandum of Understanding to help protect some of our members who are part of marginalized communities.
Join your Bargaining Team and coworkers for an update on the current bargaining campaigns on Tuesday, Sept 22, 5:30-6:30pm. We will give updates on the St. Michael and St. Joseph bargaining and how we can build power together. Please show your support for your bargaining teams by wearing your union swag with pride every day, but especially today, September 18, for our next bargaining session.
Any questions can be addressed to Charlie King at 360-409-0606 or a Bargaining Team Member.
On September 15, a strong group of UFCW 3000 members marched into EvergreenHealth’s Board meeting to make sure their voices were heard.
On Wednesday, September 16, UFCW 3000 members in the St. Michael Medical Center Pro-Tech and Clinical Support unit voted UNANIMOUSLY to reject CommonSpirit’s offer, and overwhelmingly voted to authorize a strike.
We are excited to announce that the 2026 nominations for the PCC Labor Management Advisory Committee (LMAC) will open on September 21, 2026. This is a great opportunity to nominate yourself or a coworker to help shape important decisions that impact PCC workers and our stores.
MultiCare continues to propose a wage scale placement process that could result in significant wage cuts for some members. Our Union Bargaining Team remains committed to fighting any proposal that moves workers backward.
Tuesday, September 8, was our most recent bargaining session with Broadcast management, following a successful flyer and button-up action at the cafe last Friday.
Our OMC Service Bargaining Team came to the table on September 4 prepared to have collaborative and productive discussions with management and we made meaningful progress.
Our Bargaining Team met with CommonSpirit management again on Thursday, September 3, to continue negotiations for a successor contract.
Unfortunately, the day did not end on a positive note. After more than five months since our contract’s original expiration date, our Bargaining Team has made the difficult decision to call for a Strike Authorization Vote.
On Wednesday, September 2, UFCW 3000 Children’s Therapy Center members voted with an OVERWHELMING MAJORITY to ratify our new two year collective bargaining agreement.
On Tuesday, September 1, UFCW 3000 Service & Dietary members at St. Michael Medical Center voted UNANIMOUSLY to ratify our new three-year collective bargaining agreement!
Our Bargaining Team is excited to have reached a tentative agreement on a new three-year contract that will expire September 30, 2029. Our goals this bargaining cycle were to build on the wins from our last contract to address staffing and retention, meal and rest breaks, safety, and explore benefit improvements—all with the goal of retaining the highest skilled nurses to serve our community.
Our Bargaining Team has reached a tentative agreement on a new three year contract and recommends a yes vote!
We finally got to a tentative agreement on our first union collective bargaining agreement! After almost a year of bargaining, we were able to reach a tentative agreement in our last session on August 14 with the employer.
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Bargaining Team: Ryan Sharbrough, Allyndreth Smyth, Makenna Page
The purpose of the introductory pre-bargaining meeting was to establish rapport, discuss the bargaining process and logistics, and schedule initial bargaining sessions.
The pre-bargaining introductory meeting was held between the Cognition Escape Rooms ownership and the Union bargaining unit. The parties introduced themselves, discussed bargaining expectations, reviewed the collective bargaining process, and outlined how proposals would be exchanged and negotiated.
The Union explained that negotiations would begin with non-economic proposals before moving to economic issues, such as wages and benefits. Both parties expressed a desire to maintain a respectful and productive working relationship and agreed that bargaining sessions would be conducted virtually.
The initial focus will be on non-economic proposals, including recognition, Union security, definitions, and working conditions.
Economic items, including wages, increases, benefits, and other cost-related issues, will be addressed later, once substantial progress has been made on other non-economic language.
Proposals will be presented by section or article rather than as an entire contract at once.
The first contract is expected to be approximately 35 to 45 pages or more, with only portions reviewed during each bargaining session.
A federal mediator may be brought in, if needed, to help the Employer and Union resolve contract disputes, prevent work stoppages, and navigate collective bargaining negotiations. A mediator is typically brought in once negotiations are close to an overall tentative agreement.
Subsequent bargaining sessions were scheduled for:
Wed, Sept 23 @ 3pm - 5pm
Fri, Sept 25 @ 12pm - 2pm
And health care is not the only improvement in this tentative agreement! There is much more that we cannot wait to share with you when we present the full agreement for your vote. Our Bargaining Team recommends a yes vote!
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Friday 14, we concluded our third bargaining session with management. Although we gave all our noneconomic proposals, management failed to give us a single reply at this session. Our focus in this session was largely on preparing our economic proposals.
Our goal is to ensure a benefits package that protects what everyone is already receiving while bridging the gap and inequities between different departments. Our team is working to ensure that we are building a contract that will improve the conditions of all departments! In order to achieve this, we need your input and your support.
Bargaining Team: Trevor Schultz, Trisha Self, Jessica Schell, Theresa Randolph and Clari Ramos.
Wednesday 26
6pm
330 S King St
This meeting is a great opportunity to get involved in your contract negotiations, where you can hear what is happening at the table and what you can do to help. A good contract isn’t won at the table—it is won in the field!
Contract Proposal Meeting
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Thank you to everyone who completed the bargaining survey and shared workplace concerns. Your feedback is helping identify the priorities that matter most as we prepare for negotiations.
The bargaining process is moving forward. Initial requests to bargain were sent to both Employers on July 12, 2026, with a 14-day response timeline. Both Employers followed up recently, on August 6, 2026.
Bargaining has not started yet. However, Puzzle Break’s Employer has already committed an unfair labor practice (ULP) by shortening the shifts of workers who spoke out about workplace injustices.
Your solidarity with one another and participation in the survey have brought forward several key concerns to address at the bargaining table, including:
Scheduling
Missed breaks
Low staffing
The threat of AI reducing job security
You have chosen your Bargaining Team. Next, team members will be trained and briefed on the issues you raised so they can prepare for proposal exchange and negotiations.
Please continue sharing your concerns and workplace issues as the process moves forward. Bargaining updates will be shared periodically to keep the membership informed about what is happening at the table.
Also, watch for opportunities to participate in campaign actions. Information about any actions will be shared in advance.
The following members have been nominated to serve on the Bargaining Team: Ryan Sharbrough, Mason Walsh, Allyndreth Smyth, Dane Hendricks, Makenna Page, and Riley Murphy.
Your voice matters. Continue sharing workplace concerns, ideas, and priorities with your Union Reps and Bargaining Team members. Together, we can build a strong contract that reflects the needs and priorities of all Puzzle Break and Cognition Escape Rooms workers.
On Thursday August 13, our union was notified that Citadel Acquisition LLC (a subsidiary of ZMC Management) will be purchasing a majority stake in Card Kingdom effective late September 2026.
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This has the potential to allow members to have the option of a flexible workweek schedule. Patient care will still need to be met, and the schedule is available only by mutual agreement.
This is an additional benefit that would be offered in all contracts at Covington Hospital. All changes to existing contracts must be voted on by the affected membership.
The full Memorandum of Understanding will be available at the vote.
August 21
11am - 1pm
MOB Conference Room 3
You must be a member in good standing to vote.
Please reach out to your Union Rep, Charlie King, at 206-436-6518 with any questions or concerns.
We all want health care workers and patients to have the best possible support. Better recruitment and retention of quality staff, and improved experiences for caregivers and patients, are good for everyone. Allenmore members, joining with thousands of other UFCW 3000 members across MultiCare, can achieve this vision if we come together and stand united around what we agree is needed to improve our workplaces.
Two necessary steps for us to advance our contracts across the MultiCare system are growing our numbers and standing together. Even though bargaining does not begin at Allenmore until next year, the effort to move forward on these two paths is already underway.
Newly organized members at Capital Medical Center ratified a first contract, and their contract expiration date aligns with the Tech contract.
Newly organized members at Women’s Clinic are accreting into the current Clinic Contract, and we are bargaining with MultiCare about how these workers will be placed on the wage scale.
Newly organized workers at Mary Bridge Therapies will begin bargaining for a first contract soon.
If you know of workers at MultiCare who are not yet Union members but are interested in joining UFCW 3000, please contact a UFCW 3000 Union Organizer by calling or texting 206-414-9601.
We are in the midst of conducting a MultiCare-wide pre-bargaining survey to identify members’ concerns and hopes for the next round of bargaining in 2027. If you have not yet filled out your survey, now is the time. Your opinions matter.
MultiCare is not treating all the members at Women’s Clinic with respect. Disrespecting one is disrespecting all—that is part of what being in a Union is all about. Women’s Clinic workers held a successful sticker action in early August and need broader support.
We are holding a Solidarity Sticker Up at Allenmore on Tuesday, August 18, to show our support for the Women’s Clinic members. Stickers will be distributed that day by workplace leaders and Union Rep Ondrea Shallbetter.
On August 13 we held our third bargaining session with management and were able to carry our forward momentum into our first tentative agreements!
Read MoreOur OMC Service Bargaining Team came to the table on August 12 focused, prepared, and ready to push for meaningful change.
Read MoreOur sticker action was a huge success on August 5!
We will make sure everyone has stickers for the next round on August 19.
In bargaining, management continues to take an anti-union position by proposing to cut the wages of some workers who were hired above scale as we bargain to accrete workers into the MultiCare Clinic contract. Their proposal to place workers on the wage scale based on years of experience is generally good, but we have made it clear that this would result in cuts for some workers, and we are pushing back.
Next Contract Action Meeting
Wednesday, August 19, 2026
6pm
If you have questions or would like to get more involved, please contact Union Rep Ondrea Shallbetter at (206) 436-6525.
“Equality opens the door, equity makes sure everyone can walk through it.”
— Timeka Gist
Bargaining Team: Violet Barkley, Kristina Matushevskaya, Timeka Gist.
On August 10, members of The Doctors Clinic came together to review and vote on our new contract. We are excited to share that the contract vote resulted in an overwhelming yes vote and that the contract is now ratified!
Now comes the important work of getting the contract reviewed and signed, as well as enforcing our new collective bargaining agreement. While the fight for a fair contract is over for this cycle, we must now pick up the work of building power in our worksites so that we can continue to improve what happens day to day. This means holding management accountable, training more Stewards, and always looking ahead to the issues we continue to face and how we can resolve them.
What’s Next?
Wage increases and retro pay should be reflected in paychecks beginning with the first full pay period after ratification.
We will finalize the contract and get it ready for print.
We will schedule labor-management meetings with the Employer to make sure that issues are addressed as they come up.
If you are interested in getting involved, reach out to our Union Rep, Ryan DeGouveia, and let him know that you would like to learn how you can get more involved.
At our ninth day of negotiations on August 11, our Union Bargaining Team met with Optum after nearly two months since our last session. We spent the day exchanging a few non-economic articles back & forth; primarily speaking to parental leaves of absence & agency/traveler (non-bargaining-unit) employees, and on a positive note, we ended the day with two new tentative agreements, respectively.
However, based on the Employer’s provided timeline of “late July/August,” we started our day optimistic that more comprehensive economic counterproposals would be returned to us. Their initial offering on June 10 essentially said they would continue to pay us according to current practice, provide wage increases according to current practice, and hire new workers within their pay ranges according to current practice—all at their sole discretion. The same sentiment was reflected in their health care benefits proposal: They would simply continue doing what they are already doing, with little to no say from our newly formed Union.
But these reasons are exactly why we organized our Union in the first place! Joining together to bargain for our rights and benefits as dedicated oncology workers is not necessarily a testament to the invalidity of Optum’s practices. Instead, it is about securing a voice at the bargaining table and investing in our workplace to make the Everett Oncology Clinic the best version of itself.
All that said, the Employer let us know first thing in the morning that we would not be receiving any additional economic proposals that day, attributing the delay to new internal review and approval processes. While it is worth noting that, in just eight sessions before this one, we made exceptional progress on the noneconomic sections of our new Collective Bargaining Agreement, we all felt that if management had shown up prepared with reasonable wage and benefits proposals, we might even have been able to reach a final deal.
We took the opportunity during our first joint session on August 11 to express this frustration to management. Frankly, we have grown tired of waiting. We determined that, in order to win a strong contract, we would have to show our collective strength and solidarity to Optum. We decided to launch a strike pledge to show Optum that we are ready to take action, if necessary.
Add Your Name to the Strike Pledge >>
(Your name will be kept anonymous)
Furthermore, to discuss the plan our team put together to continue building collective power, all Optum Oncology workers are strongly encouraged to attend our weekly Contract Action Team meetings through September 2. Details are below.
August 20
7pm–8pm
Join Zoom Meeting >>
Meeting ID: 881 0325 6615
August 27
7pm–8pm
Join Zoom Meeting >>
Meeting ID: 881 0325 6615
September 2
7pm–8pm
Join Zoom Meeting >>
Meeting ID: 881 0325 6615
Our Bargaining Team has newly designed stickers that we plan to distribute throughout the clinic.
Wear your new sticker, Union merchandise, and UFCW 3000 colors—blue and gold—on August 26 to show management that we are all in this together!
“I’m unpleasantly not surprised—but we’re all in, and it’s time to get moving!”
— Molly Hugo, RN
Bargaining Team: Janis Laffin, RN; Molly Hugo, RN; Ashley Seidelman, Patient Care Coordinator.
On August 7, 2026 members at Spokane Zenith voted to approve a Memorandum of Understanding that will now allow employees the opportunity to make up lost hours over the weekend at straight pay but still requires the employer to pay overtime rate of time and one-half when requiring employees to work the weekend.
If you have any question or concerns please reach out to your representative Mark Hansen, at 509-340-7406.
Since 1882, when New York City unionists marched down Broadway to demand recognition, working people have set aside a day in early September to celebrate the labor movement's achievements.
Through organizing, solidarity, and no small amount of good trouble, we've won the eight-hour workday, the weekend, Social Security and unemployment insurance, laws to keep us all safe on the job, and, of course, a real voice in our workplaces.
At UFCW 3000, we know we have more history to write and more fights to win for the benefit of all working people. But it's hard to move forward without recognizing and learning from past struggles.
To that end, here is where to celebrate Labor Day across Washington State this year.
UFCW3000 and the Alliance of Healthcare Unions, in partnership with Kaiser Permanente, invite you to apply to one of two open positions:
Contract Specialist – one year term and Alliance Partnership Representative (APR) – three-year term.
Both positions offer great opportunity to learn new skills and spend time doing meaningful work that has a direct impact on Kaiser workplaces.
If selected, you will be released from your current role. In your new role, you will continue to receive the same pay, benefits and seniority accrual, returning to your position after your contractual term.
Applications due by September 15. Both positions start January 2027.
APR JOB DESCRIPTION: Download job description here >>
To Apply: please email resume with KPWA APR Position in the subject line to: cmacphail@ufcw3000.org, mhatton@ufcw3000.org, Julie.kwiek@ahcunions.org, becky.t.peterson@kp.org
CONTRACT SPECIALIST JOB DESCIPTION: Download job description here >>
To apply: Please fill out CONTRACT SPECIALIST Application here >>
“They gave us next to nothing, so we are giving them nothing but pickets!” – Emily Hunter
Read MoreFollowing the employer’s unacceptable conduct during our previous bargaining session, and the significant distance remaining between the parties, our Union Bargaining Team asked the employer if they would agree to request assistance from the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS). The employer agreed, and an FMCS mediator was available to join us beginning with this session.
Read MoreThe time has come to make your voices heard! We encourage all Radiant Care workers to attend our scheduled vote meeting to review the full details of our new tentative agreement, ask questions, and cast your ballot!
Read MoreWe are the Union. The members of UFCW 3000 are over 50,000 members working in grocery, retail, health care, meat packing, cannabis, & other industries across Washington state, north-east Oregon, and northern Idaho. UFCW 3000 is a chartered member of UFCW International with over 1.4 million workers in North America.
To build a powerful Union that fights for economic, political and social justice in our workplaces and in our communities.
Jenny C., a transporter at Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center in Spokane, knows what it looks like when management hopes a problem will just go away.
Jenny has watched the facility's transport elevators malfunction for more than a year, filing report after report after each incident she witnessed. Supervisors did not appear to take these complaints seriously.
Fresenius workers can see in Trevino’s story what solidarity looks like in action: Checking your check, speaking up when something's wrong, and stepping up to lead when your coworkers need you.
