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Professional Pay, Respect, and Working Conditions for L&I Interpreters through Unionization
Frequently asked questions
Why do we need a union for L&I interpreters?
Right now, L&I interpreters have so voice and no choice in pay, work rules, and working conditions. In 2010 L&I unilaterally reduced the reimbursement rate from $.88/minute to $.79/minute. L&I interpreters have no way to voice their concerns about unfair reimbursement policies such as the lack of no show pay, late cancellation pay, or an hour minimum.
We are forced to work under the terms of language agencies, who often take almost half our pay, have complete power of who gets appointments, and treat interpreters as completely expendable! Even though we have the right to contract directly with L&I who is paying $47.40 per hour many of us find it impossible to get clinics to work with us unless we are contracted with a language agency. The average interpreter providing services to L&I patients makes $25/hr. That means we are giving language agencies $22.40 for every hour that we work! When we try to get a better deal from language agencies we are told it’s their way or the highway.
In these unstable economic times, the possibility of L&I implementing unfavorable changes is greater than ever. L&I is poised to look into serious allegations of fraud in the interpreter services program. We know what DSHS did to deal with allegations of fraud. They implemented a middleman broker system! If we have a union for L&I interpreter, we can negotiate for improvements and secure what we have! Once we have a union contract our pay, working conditions, and work rules cannot be changed without negotiations between us and L&I.
What is collective bargaining?
Collective bargaining is the process by which professional workers have a real voice over your wages, benefits, and working conditions. Only by forming a union can L&I interpreters have the legal right to sit down and negotiate a union contract with the state. Unlike current “contracts” interpreters have with language agencies, a union contract cannot be changed without interpreters agreeing to those changes.
I already am part of the union for DSHS, isn’t my L&I worked already covered by the union contract?
NO. The contract between interpreters and DSHS only covers appointments that are paid for by DSHS. L&I is a separate state agency and L&I medical appointments are paid for by them. Right now we have no protections and no rights to negotiate with L&I. To get a contract with L&I we must first expand the law that gave DSHS interpreters the right to form a union to include L&I interpreters. Next we have to organize and get a majority of interpreters to sign the union authorization card. This card is not a membership card. It is an indication that you want the right to negotiate over wages and working conditions with L&I. Once a majority has signed, we will ask the state to hold a union election and we will vote Union YES!
Will we have the same contract as DSHS interpreters?
NO. Once we have voted Union YES!, we will elect a bargaining team of our colleagues who will work with union staff to negotiate a separate union contract with L&I. When we negotiate a union contract we start negotiating from the current rate we receive and around the current policies and rules that we work under for labor and industries appointments. So when L&I interpreters work is covered by a union contract, interpreters will have won the right to negotiate for improvements with DSHS and Labor and Industries. This means that we will have a stronger voice to fight for professional pay, respect and working conditions for Interpreters in Washington State!
I’m already paying dues to Interpreters United (WFSE)…If we gain a union contract for L&I will I have to pay double dues?
NO! Dues are based on the work that you as an interpreter do that is covered by a union contract. So if you work only at L&I appointments, you’ll pay dues based on that work only. If you also work at social service and HCA (DSHS) appointments, your dues will be based on the total hours you provide services for these state agencies under the two different contracts. Most WFSE members pay 1.5% of their gross pay.
Right now, the State has refused to allow interpreters working at social service and HCA (DSHS) appointments to have their dues deducted automatically as a flat percentage because the State claims this would be too much work for language agencies. Instead, social service and HCA (DSHS) interpreters covered by our current union contract are signing up to voluntarily pay dues with a $16 minimum.
How do we get a union for L&I
1.) A majority of L&I interpreters must sign a confidential union authorization card saying they want a Union.
2.) Interpreters have to pass a bill granting independent contractor L&I interpreters the right to form a Union (similar to what DSHS interpreters have done).
3.) Once the confidential union authorization cards are turned into the State's labor commission (PERC), all L&I interpreters who have taken at least 1 appointment in the last year or so will get a chance to vote on whether to form a Union.
4.) L&I interpreters elect representative interpreters to a bargaining team who then negotiate a collective bargaining agreement (union contract) with the State. We will have a vote on the agreement before it goes into effect. For the agreement to be implemented with L&I, a majority of L&I interpreters must vote to approve the contract.
5.) Only once there is a collective bargaining agreement that's been voted on and approved by L&I interpreters can you sign up to be a member and pay union dues. No one pays a dime until we have voted to approve a collective bargaining agreement that has satisfactory improvements!
What can I do?
· Talk to other L&I interpreters, ask them to sign a union authorization card
· Join us on November 18-20 for a blitz! We will be out knocking on doors and talking to L&I interpreters about the union.
· Come to a phone bank and help us reach out to L&I interpreters across the state
· Host a small meeting at your home or a café with an organizer and interpreters you know
If you are interested in taking on any of these leadership roles, call or email Nikki Miller at 360-259-4554 or [email protected]
UNITED, L&I interpreters can stand up and say NO to declining pay and professional standards and YES to gaining improvements and securing what we have by having a voice and a choice through our UNION!
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