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Labor Relations

SEIU 925 – UW Negotiations Recap for August 10, 13, and 17, 2026

Last updated: August 21, 2026

Background

This recap details the sixth, seventh and eighth session for the renewal of the collective bargaining agreement (CBA) between the University of Washington and SEIU 925. Recaps are published online on the UW Labor Relations website.

 

Milliman Classified Staff Salary Study – Milliman, a third-party Consulting firm, presented an analysis of how the compensation for both healthcare and non-healthcare classified benchmark jobs compares to market.

Financial Picture & Academy Budget Overview – University of Washington, Assistant Vice President of Finance, Planning & Budgeting presented the Financial Picture & Academy Budget Overview.

UW Medicine Recruiting Updates – UW Medicine, Director of Recruiting, presented a presentation that summarized the current recruiting trends and metrics.

 

Tentative Agreements

The parties tentatively agreed to the current contract language on the following:

  • Preamble and Purpose
  • Article 1 – Union Recognition
  • Article 8 – Employee Facilities
  • Article 13 – Tuition Exemption Program
  • Article 19 – Washington Family Medical Leave Program
  • Article 22 – Childcare/Dependent Care
  • Article 24 – Unpaid Holidays for a Reason of Faith or Conscience
  • Article 25 – Absence Due to Family Care Emergencies
  • Article 29 – Military Duty Time Off & Leave
  • Article 30 – Work Related Injury Leave
  • Article 32 – Uniforms Requirement
  • Article 34 – Performance Evaluations
  • Article 35 – Personnel Files
  • Article 43 – Joint Union-Management Committees
  • Article 44 – Classifications and Reclassification
  • Article 47 – Contracting
  • Article 49 – Privacy
  • Article 50 – No Strike/Lockout
  • Article 51- Travel Pay and Work Time
  • Article 52 – Personal Services
  • Article 54 – Subordination of Agreement and Saving Clause
  • Article 57 – Management Rights and Responsibilities
  • MOU: Interpreter Services at UWMC and HMC
  • MOU: Occupational Therapist Certification

The parties tentatively agreed to roll over the following MOUs and Side Letter:

  • MOU: Scholarship Fund for Medical Center Employees
  • Side Letter E: Nonpermanent Hourly Harborview Medical Center Interpreters

 

SEIU 925 Initial Proposals

Article 9 – Hours of Work

The Union proposed a 32-hour, 4-day workweek for its members. The Union also proposed revising the definition of a part-time employee’s FTE designation to align with their 32-hour workweek proposal. The Union proposed increasing the notice period for permanent schedule changes from fourteen (14) days to thirty (30) days and increasing the notice period for temporary changes from three (3) days to fourteen (14) days. Finally, the Union proposed including language from the UW Medicine Timekeeping and Payroll Change Project (ATR) MOU, into this article.

Article 10 – Overtime

The Union proposed conforming changes throughout the article to reflect their 32-hour / 4-day workweek proposal in Article 9.

Article 38 – Seniority, Layoff, Rehire

The Union proposed employees receiving a layoff notice be granted paid time off for the remainder of the workday. The Union also proposed that employees who receive an employment option receive comprehensive training and resources to prepare them for the expectations of the position offered. Finally, the Union proposed extending the decision period from three (3) to five (5) business days for employees to exercise bumping rights or be placed on the rehire list.

The Union proposed that bargaining-unit members on a rehire list be given priority access to continuing education activities provided by UW, as well as priority over non-bargaining-unit applicants for available positions. The proposal also added SEIU 1199NW and other yet-to-be-named unions to the provision currently allowing employees represented by SEIU 925 and WFSE to be placed on the applicable rehire lists. In addition, employees including those on rehire lists would have the opportunity to apply for newly created positions involving substantially similar work or outcomes and receive training for those positions.

Finally, the Union proposed increasing the number of permitted rehire-related refusals and unsuccessful trial placements from two (2) to three (3).

Article 59: Nonpermanent Hourly and Nonpermanent Intermittent Employees

The Union proposed that all contract language apply to Nonpermanent Employees unless otherwise specified in a particular Article. The Union also proposed new language that would change the definition of a Nonpermanent position, including requirements to monitor and compare the position’s duties with those of permanent job classifications, comply with specified time frames, and meet the 480/6 criteria—working at least 480 hours over a six-month period, with an average of at least eight (8) hours per month, as referenced in Article 59.2.

Furthermore, the Union proposed requiring the Employer to provide ten (10) business days’ prior notice, rather than the current requirement of one (1) days’ notice before the conclusion of the appointment. The Union’s proposal would also eliminate the Employer’s ability to end an appointment immediately through pay in lieu of notice. Likewise, the Union’s proposal further seeks to strike existing language in Article 59.2 and thus would remove the Employer’s authority to establish hours of work, overtime, and paid holiday hours, including the use of holiday credit for nonpermanent employees. Beyond these changes the Union’s proposal would require the Employer to provide a written explanation if a request to establish a regular position is denied.

Additionally, the Union’s proposal further seeks to extend the same premiums and differentials provided to permanent employees to intermittent and nonpermanent employees. In conjunction with these changes, the Union proposed that nonpermanent and intermittent employees who work at least eighty (80) hours per month for six consecutive months can participate in the Washington State Tuition Exemption Program.

Finally, the Union proposed striking Sections 59.6–59.8 because the holiday, personal holiday, and miscellaneous leave provisions will be addressed elsewhere in the article.

MOU: UW Medicine Pre-Scheduled Voluntary Double-Time Shift Incentive for Critical Staffing Needs

The Union proposed to update the dates for the successor agreement, to reflect a two (2) year agreement and the removal of the expiration date.

New Article: Reorganization & Operational Changes

The Union proposed a new article requiring the Employer to provide the Union with at least sixty (60) days’ written notice for any and all departmental reorganizations, restructuring or programmatic realignment that impacts the duties, job classifications, staffing levels, reporting structures, or work locations of bargaining-unit employees, and would prohibit the UW from implementing these changes until the bargaining process is complete or both parties mutually agree to an interim arrangement.

New Article: Artificial Intelligence

The Union’s proposed expanding current contract language in the MOU: Artificial Intelligence (AI), therefore expanding the rules for the use of AI, resulting including making the use of AI a Mandatory Subject and rather than requiring the current 30 days’ (30) notice for changes in Mandatory Subjects, sixty days’ (60) notice would be required before implementing AI. Furthermore, the Union proposed that automated decisions regarding hiring, firing, discipline, pay, scheduling, workloads, and employment applications require human oversight.

In addition, the Union’s proposal would require employee consent regarding data collection; limit monitoring and AI notetaking; and mandate audits for bias, privacy, civil rights, and legal compliance. The Union proposed that the Employer would be required to provide training, protect workers who report AI-related harms, label AI-generated content, retrain employees whose work changes because of AI, and prohibit using AI to move bargaining-unit jobs into non-bargaining positions.

Side Letter D: Public Transportation Delays

The Union proposed to rollover this MOU.

Market Rate Increases

Furthermore, the Union proposed several market rate adjustments, including the following classifications:

New MOU: Registered Dietitian Market Rate Increase –

The Union’s proposal calls for implementing market rate adjustments for Registered Dietitians effective July 1, 2027, increasing the pay range from 41 to 56.

New MOU: Library Supervisors Market Rate Increase –

The Union’s proposal calls for implementing market rate adjustments that would result in pay increases for Library Supervisors, effective July 1, 2027:

  • Library Supervisor I, move from pay range 41 to 49.
  • Library Supervisor II, move from pay range 45 to 53.
  • Library Specialist I – Supervisor, move from pay range 45 to 53.
  • Library Specialist II – Supervisor move from pay range 49 to 57.

New MOU: Scientific Instructional Technician 3 New Classification and Reclassification of UW Bothell Scientific Instructional Technician 2 –

The Union’s proposal would require creating a new Technician 3 job classification, then reclassifying UW Bothell Scientific Technician 2 into the new Scientific Technician 3 job class, and then placing them in the following pay ranges effective July 1, 2027:

  • Scientific Instructional Technician 3, proposed range at 51.
  • Scientific Instructional Technician 3, proposed range at 51.

 

UW Initial Proposals

Article 3 – Reasonable Accommodation of Employees with Disabilities

The Employer proposed adding updated language from UW Administrative Policy Statement 46.5 regarding reasonable accommodations related to, affected by, or arising out of pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions.

Article 5 – Affirmative Action

The Employer proposed updating this article with language maintaining our commitment to the UW Affirmative Action Program, which is supported by the University President. The proposal would replace the existing language.

Article 6 – Grievance Procedure

The Employer proposed that grievance meetings be held via teleconference, with in-person meetings permitted only by mutual agreement. The Employer also proposed that the parties begin scheduling Step 2 grievance meetings within fifteen (15) calendar days, replacing the current requirement that the parties mutually agree to meet within fifteen (15) calendar days after receiving notice that a Step 2 grievance has been filed.

Additionally, the Employer proposed requiring the party advancing a grievance to arbitration to do so within 30 calendar days and provide written notice to the other party. The proposal added new deadlines and process requirements for advancing a grievance to arbitration.

The Employer also proposed deleting the current contract language establishing a permanent arbitrator panel and replacing it with language specifying that panel appointments would remain in effect only for the life of the Agreement. The proposed language would require the parties to discuss a replacement if an arbitrator leaves the panel.

Finally, the Employer proposed allowing the arbitrator to retain jurisdiction for sixty (60) days after issuing a decision to resolve disputes concerning implementation of the remedy, the arbitrator’s authority, pre-hearing disclosures, procedural arbitrability, court reporter costs, caucus space, and transcript costs.

Article 9 – Hours of Work

The Employer proposed adding language that employees, by mutual agreement with their manager or designee, may waive premium payments if they requested a temporary schedule change that would put them on a shift or day that may have a premium paid that the employee would otherwise not receive during their regular work schedule.

Article 10 – Overtime

The Employer proposed language cleanup to clarify how overtime is calculated for employees, subject to the 8/80 schedule. The proposal does not change the substantive method of how UW calculates overtime. The Employers proposal replaces references to the employee’s “regular” rate with “applicable” rate of pay to clarify that differentials and other applicable pay components are included.

The Employer also proposed revising Option 2 to reflect changes related to ATR positions. With social workers now having non-exempt status, employees who select Option 2 would receive overtime after working more than forty hours in the applicable work period, rather than after eighty hours.

Article 23 – Shared Leave

The Employer proposed adding the current RCW 41.04 language governing eligibility for the state shared-leave program.

Article 37 – Employee Assistance Program

The Employer proposed clarifying language that the Washington State Employee Assistance Program (WA EAP) is available to all UW employees and their household members and provides a range of services to help identify and resolve personal concerns related to health, safety, and well-being.

Article 38 – Seniority, Layoff, Rehire

The Employer proposed that the seniority tiebreaker apply to both layoff and department seniority and that the FTE provision be limited to reductions rather than increases. The Employer also proposed granting employees’ months of service credit toward a higher vacation accrual rate equal to the time they spent on the rehire list before being rehired from layoff status.

Article 39 – Resignation and Abandonment

The Employer proposed that when an employee has not reported to or contacted their supervisor, the process will require all current telephone numbers and emergency contact numbers listed on Workday, be attempted, a change from using only using the employee’s home telephone number. The Employer included updating language by changing “compensation time” to “compensatory time.”

Article 41 – New Employees

The Employer proposed minor housekeeping edits including changing “NEO” to “Orientation” throughout this article. Furthermore, the Employer’s proposal includes removing language that excludes time spent completing orientation as time worked for purposes of calculating overtime.

Article 42 – Union Activities, Rights, and Stewards

The Employer proposed that information requests generally be limited to the prior twenty-four months unless the Union articulates a legitimate reason for requesting older information. The proposal also adds that, if the parties cannot agree regarding an information request, the Union may submit a public-records request as an additional avenue for obtaining the information.

Article 55 – Contract Distribution

The Employer proposed removing the language requiring UW to provide all current and newly represented employees with a link to the new agreement. The agreements are updated on the Labor Relations website.

Article 60 – Salary Overpayment Recovery

The Employer proposed updating the salary-overpayment recovery language to reflect current practice and how the UW recovers overpayments for active and separated employees.

Article 61 – Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

The Employer proposed changing the article’s title to “Inclusion and Belonging” and removing outdated language. The proposal maintains the Union’s access to existing DEI committees and the Union can request reports when needed; the Civil Rights Office continues to investigate the covered issues.

 

UW Counter Proposals

Article 14 – Hiring, Appointment, Promotions, and Transfers

In response to the Union’s proposal, the Employer rejects the Union’s initial proposal and reasserts the initial proposal it emailed to the Union on Tuesday, August 11, 2026.

Article 36 – Corrective Action/Dismissal

In response to the Union’s proposal, the Employer reasserted current contract language.

Article 39 – Resignation and Abandonment

In response to the Union’s proposal the Employer proposed attempting to contact employees using all current telephone and emergency contact numbers listed on Workday, rather than only the employee’s home telephone number. The Employer proposed changing “compensation time” to “compensatory time.”

New Article: Telework

In response to the Union’s proposal, the Employer reasserted current telework contract language from Article 33.

New Article: Productivity/Accuracy/Quality Metrics

In response to the Union’s proposal the Employer rejected the Union’s proposal, stating that the topic is specific to the contact center and that it is not interested in expanding the scope.

 

Next Steps

The next SEIU 925 and UW bargaining session is scheduled for Monday, August 26, 2026, and will be held virtually.