Yakima, Wash. – Senate Bill 5041, which proposes extending unemployment insurance benefits to striking or locked-out workers, was discussed in a public hearing within the House Appropriations Committee today. The bill has already passed through the Senate with a 28-21 vote in March. If passed, Washington would join New York, New Jersey, and Maine as the only states to have such laws.
State Senator Marcus Riccelli, a supporter and prime sponsor of SB 5041, emphasized the bill’s intent to support working families.
“This is just trying to bring balance back to the working families and make sure that they can have fair wages, good benefits. This tipped the scales back to the workers,” he said.
SB 5041 would allow workers who go on strike to start receiving unemployment insurance benefits two weeks after the strike begins. These benefits would be available for up to 12 weeks.
“We have to grow our economy from the middle out. This is definitely a pro-worker bill to ensure that folks, particularly our lowest wage workers, have an opportunity to win fair contracts so that they’re paid fairly so that they can get good health benefits and that they can have safe working conditions,” Riccelli said.
However, not everyone supports the bill. State Senator Nikki Torres, who opposed the bill, expressed concerns about its alignment with the current unemployment insurance (UI) system.
“When you go back and look at why the UI system was created, it was created as a safety net for workers who have lost their jobs and are actively seeking work. But it’s nowhere in there does it say it’s for striking workers,” she said.
Torres also raised concerns about the financial implications for employers, who fund the unemployment insurance system.
“The system currently right now is paid for by employers, not employees. So the UI benefits are not meant to pay for labor disputes,” she emphasized.
Riccelli countered by stating that strikes should be rare and are typically a last resort.
“We know strikes are a last resort. No one goes on strike to get unemployment insurance, which, again, is just a partial piece of their wages,” he said.
The House Appropriations Committee will discuss SB 5041 further in an executive session on Monday. More information about the bill and its progress can be found here.
