Governor Chris Gregoire said “These workers have recognized the dire economic situation in this state. The remarkable thing about this development is that representatives of these unions came to me and said they wanted to renegotiate their contracts.”
The ferry system is under unusual pressure this year as the Governor and the Legislature consider the future of the system. To maintain the current level of service, the ferry system predicts a $3.4 billion shortfall over the next 22 years. Even with major cutbacks, the system stands to have a shortfall of more than $1 billion in the same time period.
Gregoire told a news conference on Monday that “We’re either going to have to cut the ferry system dramatically, or we’re going to have to find a funding source that can allow us to continue the benefits that people want.”
She said “All of us—labor and management—are forming a work group to look hard at how to do things better in the ferry system. We are going to sit down together over the next month to discover ways to put the financially troubled ferry system back onto firmer footing.”
Washington State Ferries director David Moseley says the ferry system is not financially sustainable.
-Filed from Olympia