Puget Sound electrical workers vote on whether to end 2-month strike
About 1,000 electrical workers in the Puget Sound region were voting on Thursday whether to go back to work.
International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 46 has been on strike for two months in pursuit of better pay and benefits.
“Part of it is the holidays, we've never had paid holidays,” electrician Patrick Davis of Arlington said on the picket line outside the National Electrical Contractors Association office in Shoreline. “Holidays to us are just kind of an unpaid forced day off. So we'd really like to spend time with our families and not worry about working more for that.”
RELATED: Striking Seattle electrical workers demand better pay, improved safety
The Puget Sound chapter of the National Electrical Contractors Association, which represents the electricians’ employers, could not be reached for comment Thursday afternoon.
The union and the contractors association have been in contract negotiations since January.
Votes are to be tallied Thursday evening to determine whether the electrical workers will end their two-month-long strike.
-
John Ryan
Environment Reporter
John Ryan joined KUOW as its first full-time investigative reporter in 2009 and became its environment reporter in 2018. He focuses on climate change, energy, and the ecosystems of the Puget Sound region.
More stories from John Ryan »
