How to win a strong contract

Join the Washington Labor Education Research Center’s popular Bargaining 101 course in person or online this fall

SEATTLE, WA (October 9, 2025) — Winning a strong contract is no easy feat. It takes strategy, tenacity, and carefully-fostered solidarity to sustain pressure on a boss and secure a collective bargaining agreement that improves working conditions. But despite the difficulty, workers can and do secure game-changing contracts — like the Machinists at Boeing, healthcare workers in Bellingham, cultural workers at the Tacoma Art Museum, hotel workers in SeaTac, and countless more.

Trade unionists have an opportunity to learn the skills that get the goods this fall with the Washington Labor Education Research Center’s wildly popular Bargaining 101 course. Running for five weeks from early November to mid-December, the course is open to union members, officers, and staff. It covers legal frameworks, skills at the bargaining table, researching and preparing contract proposals, planning effective participatory contract campaigns, negotiation skills, opening up participatory bargaining, and much more.

The course will be held on Thursday evenings from 6pm to 8pm starting Novemeber 6. It’s offered in a hybrid format, with an option to attend in-person at the Labor Center in Georgetown or online via Zoom. LERC encourages folks to register with their fellow union members and build up skills across the bargaining unit.

The cost to register is $25, with dinner offered for in-person attendees. The dates and topics of each session are listed below, and attendees can learn more and register on the Labor Center website. Space is limited, and spots are filling up fast, so register today!