Author: Jason Arends

Brew Review 2025

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Brew Review returns this year with a new date and location. On Thursday, April 17th join us at Stoup Brewery and Beer Hall in Capitol Hill for a night of camaraderie, food, drink, a silent auction. This all-ages event will have tickets available soon, so save the date!

Urgent action needed:

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Ask your legislators to support HB 1486 unemployment benefits for caregivers!

This week, the House of Representatives is considering an important bill for caregivers in Washington state: HB 1486, which would add a good-cause quit for workers who face a caregiving inaccessibility problem, either because of scheduling changes by their employer or other factors outside the caregiver’s control.  Please ask your legislators today to vote for this bill.

The problem of caregiving inaccessibility created by a job that the caregiver needs to support their family has grown worse every year. Here is how HB 1486 would bring some relief:

  • Some 350,000 workers in Washington must provide unpaid care to a family member, such as an elderly parent, while working a paying job. Hundreds of thousands of working parents also often find that affordable child care has become unavailable.
  • HB 1486 modifies unemployment benefits so that working people can still be covered if their employer changes their schedule or if other circumstances make child care or other family caregiving inaccessible.
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  • HB 1486 will fix an unusually harsh unemployment insurance law that Washington passed two decades ago, and that often forces workers to choose between their caregiving responsibilities and their job.
  • Benefits help unemployed workers find a new job that will work for their caregiving responsibilities. Parents, caregivers, and families across Washington need this simple and common sense fix so that if they experience job loss, they know they will have basic income support so they can find another job and remain in the workforce.

ULP is joined by the Washington State Labor Council, MomsRising, and unions and worker advocates across the state in supporting HB 1486. Please urge your state representatives to vote for HB1486 and show that they stand with Washington families and workers.

For contact information on your state House and Senate members, go to https://app.leg.wa.gov/DistrictFinder/ and simply enter your address. They urgently need to know that Washington workers and families are counting on their support for working caregivers.