WPEA is awaiting a decision from the Washington State Supreme Court on our appeal regarding the Office of Financial Management’s (OFM) actions in 2024. We remain hopeful the Court will rule that OFM’s conduct was illegal and in bad faith.

We want to provide an update on the ongoing legal action and negotiations with the Office of Financial Management (OFM) regarding our bargaining efforts for the 2024-2025 contract.

In the Fall of 2024, WPEA members voted to reject the State’s Tentatively Agreed (TA) to proposal and send their bargaining teams back to the table to continue negotiations.

On October 1, 2024, WPEA provided notice to the Office of Financial Management (OFM) that our members had rejected the TA’s and that we needed to return to the table for further negotiations. At that point, OFM argued that they did not have authority to continue negotiations for a 2 year contract, that our TA’s were gone and we were “bargaining from scratch”, that they had no obligation to seek funding of a ratified agreement and they refused to provide reasonable bargaining dates. Based on these positions, WPEA filed a lawsuit against OFM in November of 2024 for bad faith with the Superior Court – this suit asked for injunctive relief that would require OFM to return to the table and negotiate for a two year agreement, seek funding for any ratified agreement and not regressively bargain by saying that WPEA was bargaining from scratch.

In December the Superior Court found in the State’s favor and declined to issue injunctive relief. In late January 2025 WPEA appealed that decision to the Supreme Court and asked for an expedited briefing schedule based on the timeline for getting a ratified and funding agreement prior to July 1, 2025.

On Thursday, February 27, 2025, we had a hearing on our appeal. WPEA maintained our argument that the positions that OFM took in September, October and November of last year were illegal and bad faith. OFM’s attorney argued that the positions that were taken in the Fall of 2024 were things that they had moved away from and that they did not follow through on their threats not to negotiate for a two-year agreement.

To watch the recording of the hearing please click here or visit https://tvw.org/video/washington-state-supreme-court-2025021481/

WPEA’s attorney argued that injunctive relief is still necessary because WPEA does not believe that OFM would have moved away from their illegal positions if we had not filed our lawsuit and subsequent appeal. Likewise, without court action, nothing prevents OFM from changing their position again and going back to their previous assertions. Our attorney pointed out that OFM did not concede to a two-year agreement until the appeal was filed and the briefs were due. OFM’s attorney argued that they intend to meet their obligation to seek funding, should WPEA get a ratified agreement, and that their movement away from their positions last Fall were through the course of bargaining. Essentially, OFM is saying that their movement away from these illegal positions is part of the bargaining process and should be viewed as movement toward WPEA’s position through the bargaining process. That argument does not hold weight because WPEA members should not have to use bargaining time, resources and leverage to get OFM to follow the basic provisions that apply to good faith bargaining!

We do not know exactly when the Court will rule on this, but our attorney has asked that they try and get an answer to us by mid-March, this is based on the Legislative Session continuing, despite what is occurring in the courts, and our need to get an agreement funded, should members vote to ratify.

We are hopeful that the Supreme Court will agree with us that the positions taken by OFM in 2024 were bad faith and, therefore, illegal.

As we await the Washington State Supreme Court’s decision on our appeal regarding OFM’s actions, it is crucial that we stay united and informed. Join our UNITY meetings to stay updated on the latest developments and continue to show your support. Your participation is vital as we work together to ensure a fair and just outcome for all members. Stay engaged—attend the meetings, stay informed, and help us strengthen our collective voice! Bring a non-member if you can. We are stronger together, always! We look forward to seeing you there.

To read more about how we got here visit: https://www.wpea.org/lawsuit.html