It's not a strike, those are organized, formal and allowed upon the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) this would be likely considered a wobble, likely against the CBA, but a labor disruption, not approved by the union or CBA. Point had been made. Power to the worker, pay up
As a regular rider on our state ferries, I know how important our ferry service is to Washingtonians. Restoring our ferry service has been one of my top priorities since taking office, and we’ve made significant progress on that front, due in large part to the efforts of our workers.
I met this morning with local and national MEBA union leadership. They shared their perspective on challenges facing their membership. As always, my door remains open to discussing those issues, and I remain committed to improving staffing levels.
That said, causing significant harm and inconvenience to the people of Washington state is not the way to address those issues. I was very direct in our meeting: My expectation is that every vessel on every route is fully operational no later than the first vessel sailing tomorrow morning.