Worker’s bill of rights likely to appear on Tacoma ballot, but timeline is unclear
Tacoma residents are likely to vote on a “Worker’s Bill of Rights,” though the timeline to do so is unclear.
Organizers with the United Food and Commercial Workers Union 367 chapter and the Tacoma Democratic Socialists of America submitted signatures for the ballot initiative to city officials in late June. The initiative includes language that would, among other things, set a $20 minimum wage and increase protections for workers in Tacoma.
City and county officials validated the signatures by July 10, leaving the initiative in the hands of the City Council for another 30 days, according to the city charter. The council has until Aug. 9 to approve the initiative outright, in which case it wouldn’t appear on the ballot. It also could vote to reject the measure or could choose not to take any action. In either of those cases, the council would be required to submit the proposal to voters.
Council has met in three study sessions since the petition was validated to discuss the contents of the initiative and the legal implications if it were to be implemented. Though they haven’t made a decision, council members have signaled they are unlikely to approve the initiative outright – meaning it would go to voters instead.
Mayor Victoria Woodards said at the council’s Aug. 5 study session that she asked city staff to schedule a special meeting for Friday, Aug. 8, to discuss the measure one last time, so the council can take action before the 30 day timeline ends. The agenda for the meeting includes a resolution calling for a special election on Nov. 4, 2025, with the Worker’s Bill of Rights, also called “Initiative 2” to be placed on the ballot.
Woodards said she doesn’t plan to bring forward legislation at the meeting to adopt the initiative outright, and no such legislation was on the agenda for the meeting as of Aug. 6.
“I want to be clear with my colleagues, I am not planning to bring forward legislation that allows us to adopt it – there are just far too many changes and far too many concerns that I have to be able to do that,” she said at the council’s Aug. 5 study session.
Interim city manager Hyun Kim said at the Aug. 5 study session that implementing the initiative could cost the city at least around $1.5 to $2 million each year to create an employment standards division with a few employees who would be responsible for enforcing the initiative, as the city continues to contend with a budget deficit.
Council has the option to put forward an alternate initiative, but Kim told The News Tribune that doing so would require additional processes that would take more time and might not be possible given how close the November election is.
“We hope to know more after Friday morning’s special council meeting,” Kim said in a statement.
Pierce County elections manager Kyle Haugh told The News Tribune that the city of Tacoma missed the Aug. 5 deadline to submit the initiative to appear on the ballot for the Nov. 4 general election, which means voters may not decide on the measure in 2025.
The Tacoma city charter states that the City Council “shall submit the proposal to the people at the next Municipal or General Election that is not less than ninety (90) days after the date on which the signatures on the petition are validated” – which, after Nov. 4, 2025, will not take place until 2026.
When asked whether the initiative would appear on the November ballot, the city said in a statement that Pierce County determines what goes on the ballot. The council will vote on the item as a “special election” to align with state law, since general elections are reserved for issues that occur on a repeating basis, including elections for office, the statement read.
The proposed initiative has been a significant topic of discussion at candidate forums for the upcoming Nov. 4 general election, as mayoral candidates largely expressed support for the ideas behind the initiative but not the actual initiative itself. Members of Tacoma’s business community turned out to the council’s July 22 meeting to speak against the measure.
“You’ve been hearing from Tacoma businesses through emails, phone calls, public testimony, raising serious concerns about Measure 2. The chamber shares those concerns.” Andrea Reay, CEO of the Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber of Commerce, told the council at its July 22 meeting. “As written, Measure 2 creates real challenges for our local economy.”
Activists who helped draft the initiative and collect signatures have said their goal is to address the rising cost of living in Tacoma.
“Some people think that by raising the minimum wage, then the cost of everything is going to go up, but the truth of the matter is, we’re chasing the cost of living. We’re not ahead of it. We haven’t been ahead of it in a long time,” UFCW 367 president Michael Hines told The News Tribune earlier this year.
