Nominations Are Open for Bargaining Committee Elections

We’re holding new elections for our leadership body, the ten-person Bargaining Committee. The Bargaining Committee helps lead the union by holding discussions with CWU admin, organizing our leadership networks in departments across campus, and holding hundreds of discussions with members about what they want to change in their workplaces.

The nominations period is open through 6:00 PM on Saturday, April 6th. Every member is automatically nominated to run, so all you have to do to run is fill out this form declaring your interest.

During the nomination period, every eligible member will be automatically nominated, and needs to just accept their nomination through this form. Once a nomination has been accepted, the elections committee will verify eligibility and candidates will be notified. The Working Wildcats are seeking to elect 10 committee members, comprised of 6 operational student employees (OSEs) and 4 educational student employees (ESEs).

Campaign Rules

If more than 10 candidates accept their nominations there will be time for candidates to campaign to win one of the Bargaining Committee seats. Afterwards, an email will be sent out to all members with everyone's candidate statements, bios, and photos attached, so everyone has equal access to communicate with the membership. Candidates during this time may table, post flyers, talk to people, text and phone their friends but may not campaign during official union meetings or use union resources including numbers and emails sourced from union lists. Campaigning is a great way to spread awareness about the causes and directions you want to champion as a leader; we believe it’s possible to delineate clear differences with other candidates while also maintaining a comradely spirit as we all work toward the same goal.

Election Timeline and Rules

If more people accept nomination than there are slots, we will hold a campaign period and election. 

Campaign Period: Sunday, April 7th - Wednesday, April 10th

During this period, candidates can (and should) talk to other union members about their goals and visions for the union in preparation of the vote. The Elections Committee will send candidate statements and photos out to the membership to ensure everyone has equal access to share their visions. Candidates may not use any official union or employer resources (email list servs, social media accounts) to promote their candidacies. 

Voting Period: Thursday, April 11 - Friday, April 12th

Voting will be done electronically, with ballots sent out to all members on Thursday, April 11th and Friday, April 12th, through OpaVote, a secure digital voting platform. Bargaining Committee members will be elected in order of votes received. Anyone who has signed an authorization card and is a current student CWU may cast votes for up to 10 nominated BC candidates. 

If you have any questions, please contact organizing@workingwildcats.org!

SB 5895 is DEAD, but NOT FORGOTTEN

Senate Bill 5895, providing the proper framework for operational student employees’(OSEs) bargaining rights, was killed in committee on February 5, 2024. The Working Wildcats woke up on Saturday morning to find SB5895 not included in the agenda for Monday’s Ways and Means Committee Hearing.

Throwing aside their weekends, alongside WAWU students, another regional college that is organizing their OSEs, they got to action asking our legislators “Why?” 172 supporters sent emails to their lawmakers at the state capitol, asking for the bill to get its fair chance on the agenda.

Seven regional college students, from Central Washington University and Western Washington University, woke up early on Monday morning to fight for the bill that everyone had worked so hard on crafting, supporting, and lobbying for. Leaving Ellensburg at 7 am, four sleepy Working Wildcats arrived at the Ways and Means Committee Hearing in Olympia, WA to demand answers from the lawmakers that claim to be pro-labor.

WAWU students arrived with shirts painted with “DON’T KILL SB5895”, which got the attention of many lawmakers and committee members but did not sway the decision of the bill’s silent opponent. While behavior remained civil, our dissatisfaction with the agenda was seen when not heard, as eight supporters (seven donning t-shirts) claimed the front row of the 6+ hour-long meeting.

Upon her election, Senator June Robinson of the 38th District had promised to support specifically “student unionization” if the bill came up for a vote. As the co-chair of the Ways and Means Committee, Robinson made the unilateral decision not to include the bill on the agenda that she was tasked to create. When taking the Senators’ comments at face value, Robinson’s fellow Ways and Means Committee members were not aware of the bill’s absence on the agenda. After being pressed, her justification was the “high fiscal note” and “broad” language of the bill, an issue that had not been brought up in the previous hearing.

After a 14-hour day at the Capitol, the Working Wildcats have much to consider in their next steps. With the bill being dead in the Senate, their fight for recognition is not over. The Working Wildcats will not stop until every student worker on campus has safe and equitable working conditions.This will not deter Working Wildcats from moving forward and seeking to win recognition. We know this legislation was a way, but not the only way, that recognition can happen.

The Working Wildcats Make Front Page - CWU Observer

The Working Wildcats have been featured on the front page of The Observer, CWU’s award-winning student-run newspaper. Follow this link to check it out!

Support the Unionizing Efforts of Washington College Students

The Working Wildcats are working right now to get legally recognized as a labor union in Washington state, and we need your help! This is an opportunity for any and every Washingtonian to let their representatives know that they support the legal rights for ANY type of student employment. A student worker is a student working!

Can you take a minute and head over to the WA Senate website, and quickly sign “PRO” on a short form to let our lawmakers know that you support student workers’ right to unionze?

Sign PRO on SB 5895 for Washington state university students!

Fired SLICE 6 Re-hired Through Community Efforts

On January 11th, VP Ortega met with the fired SLICE workers / Working Wildcats and informed us that everyone will be fully reinstated with no loss of compensation, and CWU is taking immediate steps to improve communication and conditions in the SLICE office. The workers talked through these changes with the administration and believe that the improvements will address all the concerns they laid out in last week's letter. Every single thing we asked CWU to make right, they have now made right.

We are so excited that these workers can continue working and living in Ellensburg this quarter, and that CWU was responsive to our community.

This was only possible because we organized as a collective. Hundreds of people helped show Central administration that we stand together and support each other as a community.

This is what Working Wildcats has been about since DAY ONE when we set out to form a union for student workers. Student employees and the broader community, standing up for each other, and working together to help make Central a better place to work and study.

The Signatures That Made This Unity Possible

Working Wildcats Rally for Kickoff

More than 75 working wildcats gathered in Samuelson Hall Wednesday night to kickoff the establishment of the Working Wildcats! Student workers discussed what they would like to change in their workplaces and the process of forming a union. There were also statements of solidarity from other unions at CWU and Ellensburg, including PSE, WFSE, EEA, and others!