SEATTLE – Salaried workers in Washington state who log long hours on the job soon could be eligible for overtime pay.

The Department of Labor and Industries has proposed raising the threshold for overtime pay for the first time in more than four decades.

Currently any salaried worker making more than $23,660 a year is exempt from overtime pay laws. That threshold is less than the annual pay for someone working a full-time job on the state's minimum wage.

Economic Opportunity Institute policy director Marilyn Watkins says as the law stands now, bosses can make salaried employees work 50 to 60 hours a week without costing the company any additional money for overtime.

"So you're losing out both on income for your family, but also the ability to have some control of your time and the ability to spend time with your family, for rest or personal time," she points out.

The income threshold would increase at different rates, with a lower threshold for small businesses and a higher one for larger companies, until it reaches nearly $80,000 a year for all employees in 2026.

At that time, the new rule would cover more than 250,000 workers.

Opponents maintain the measure goes too far and say the state should wait for the federal government's rule on this. The U.S. Department of Labor has proposed increasing the threshold to about $35,300 a year.

Watkins says Washington state should be a leader on this and other workers' rights issues and shouldn't revert to the lowest common denominator, especially as the cost of living grows for families.

She also notes that increased pay for workers gives them a chance to put more money into the economy and that overtime was created, in part, so that businesses could expand employment.

"Instead of just putting more and more and more work and more and more hours on their existing workforce, actually, if they had more work to do, going out and hiring another person,” she stresses. “So it really was all about job creation as well as about protecting and building up economic security for working families."

Watkins adds that the current income threshold of about $23,000 also applies to the state's paid sick and safe-leave law. An update to this rule would guarantee salaried workers have access to leave.

Public comment is open on the overtime rule at the Department of Labor and Industries' website through Sept. 6.

Nurses in Minnesota and other parts of the country are calling attention to an issue felt by many parts of society - the growing influence of artificial intelligence. Last week, thousands of nurses around the U.S. held rallies, demanding the hospital industry ensure safeguards as AI technology finds its way into care settings.

Chris Rubesch, Minnesota Nurses Association President and cardiac nurse from Duluth, said he and his colleagues aren't opposed to AI innovation, but added the rapid pace of adoption requires deep analysis. He said administrators should know they simply can't replace decision-making by humans in critical moments.

"And it's quite common for the computer program that's already built in to accidentally misinterpret a heart rhythm, right? It happens. Machines aren't perfect," he explained.

Researchers have made progress in seeing AI help diagnose certain patients, such as those being treated for skin cancer. However, the Medical Group Management Association says it should still be a complementary tool, noting ethical considerations regarding patient data privacy.

Hospital systems are increasingly dealing with budget pressures, but Rubesch said finding efficiencies shouldn't come at the expense of patient care.

"Health care can't be boiled down to dollars and cents," he continued." These are human lives, not revenue-generating units."

Rubesch added that bargaining units for roughly 15,000 Minnesota nurses will be negotiating new contracts this spring, and he anticipates artificial intelligence will come up in those discussions.


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As President Donald Trump abandons a promise the U.S. made in Paris nearly a decade ago, organized workers across Colorado are joining forces to address a climate emergency which, according to global scientific consensus, threatens the very biosphere needed to sustain life as we know it.

Nate Bernstein, executive director of Climate Jobs Colorado, said today's economy is not working for all Coloradans. He believes ramping up clean energy production can help reduce income and racial inequality.

"As of 2018, we had the highest gap in equality and wealth in over 100 years," Bernstein pointed out. "One way that we can help bridge that gap is by creating good solid union jobs across the state of Colorado."

Trump has issued executive orders to achieve energy dominance by increasing production of oil, gas and coal. When burned, the fossil fuels release greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere. More than two centuries of industrial pollution has led to rising global temperatures and an increase in catastrophic events including massive wildfires, flooding, prolonged drought and polar vortexes.

Bernstein noted a worker-centered roadmap created in partnership with Cornell University would expand opportunities for high-paying careers to all Coloradans, including workers in rural parts of the state where coal-fired power plants are set to retire as cheaper energy sources come online.

"We know that workers that work in those facilities have the skill set and/or can be trained to operate stable energy like geothermal and other sources," Bernstein explained.

The coalition includes the Amalgamated Transit Union, Colorado AFL-CIO, Colorado Building and Construction Trades Council and International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. Bernstein added they are working on a bill to end a 1943 law requiring a second, supermajority election to form a union.

"We're continuing to build the coalition to make sure that the laws enacted at the Capitol continue to be favorable for working people as well as the environment," Bernstein emphasized. "All while assuring that we close the gap on racial and economic inequity within our state."


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The Service Employees International Union is joining the AFL-CIO, a move both groups said will make it easier for more workers to unionize.

SEIU is the nation's largest union of health care workers, janitors and security officers, among others. Combined with the AFL-CIO, a federation of more than 60 national and international labor unions, the group now has 15 million members.

Alan Dubinsky, communications director for SEIU Local 49, representing Oregon and Southwest Washington, said the two unions have a history of working together and they share many of the same values.

"We want to unite people across class lines no matter where they live, no matter the color of their skin, who they love, so we can stand up to billionaire interest and corporate greed," Dubinsky explained.

Research shows although only one in 10 workers is currently part of a union, more than 60 million people said they would join a union if they could. In a statement, the AFL-CIO said it will fight for new rules to strengthen the rights of workers to organize and collectively bargain.

Recent polls showed unions have near record-high favorability, with 67% of Americans approving of them. Last year had some major wins for labor, including The United Auto Workers, unions representing airline workers, and several Hollywood entertainment unions. Dubinsky noted rights for workers cannot be won alone.

"As working people, we all want the same things," Dubinsky contended. "We want jobs that are going to pay us enough to live. We want accessible, affordable, quality health care for ourselves, for our loved ones. "

When workers organize, research shows wages increase and working conditions improve. In 2024, petitions to form or join a union more than doubled from the previous year.