The Washington state workforce data and trends overview includes all permanent and nonpermanent employees in state agencies under the jurisdiction of the governor and other executive elected officials.

It does not, however, cover employees in higher education and certain others, such as emergency firefighters, Youth Conservation Corps members and those who are paid by the state’s payroll system but are not considered state employees.

Some information focuses on the executive branch, which composes 98.0 percent of the workforce, excluding higher education and commodities commissions. The legislative branch and judicial branch represent the remaining 2.0 percent. Staffing trends for state government including higher education and commodities commissions can be found on fiscal.wa.gov.

The primary source of the information is the enterprise Human Resource Management System, or SAP-HRMS.

Key events affecting the workforce in fiscal year 2024

LEGISLATIVE IMPACTS:

• 2SHB 2014 Concerning the definition of veteran and restoring honor to veterans. The term "qualifying discharge" is added to provisions establishing various benefit programs for veterans, generally replacing references to "honorable discharge." The provision establishing that a physical disability discharge is generally considered an honorable discharge for purposes of admitting certain veterans to the Washington State Bar Association is repealed. The requirement that county auditors record certificates of discharge for veterans of World War I and the Spanish-American War is repealed.

• HB 1950 Concerning the public service loan forgiveness program. State agencies must provide PSLF materials to former employees upon separation. If a state agency does not directly certify employment with the USDOE, it must certify employment for any current or former employee who requests employment certification by providing a partially completed manual public student loan forgiveness form to the appropriate agency contact or by submitting a request to the appropriate agency contact through the federal online PSLF Help Tool. The state agency must also send a reminder notice to submit a PSLF employment certification request to employees for whom the state agency has previously certified employment one year after the last date employment was certified for that employee.

• HB 2216 Reducing barriers to state employment by eliminating two-year and four-year degree requirements that are unnecessary. The classification plan may not require a two-year or four-year college degree as the only way to demonstrate qualifications for a role unless that degree is required by law.

• HB 2246 Concerning vacation leave accrual for state employees. The annual cap on the accrual of unused vacation leave for state employees has increased to 280 hours. This change aims to better support employees who work long hours, particularly in essential roles such as behavioral health, nursing, and public safety, ensuring they can retain more of their earned benefits despite staffing shortages​.

• SB 6157 Reforming civil service to permit deferred action for childhood arrivals recipients to apply for civil service and incorporate civil service advantage for bilingual and multilingual applicants, applicants with higher education, and applicants with prior work experience in social services.

Civil Service Advantage. In all competitive examinations, the agency head within the hiring organization has discretion to add a maximum of 15 percent to the passing mark, or rating, of applicants with specific qualifications. For candidates who have full professional proficiency or are completely fluent as a native speaker in two languages other than English, 10 percent may be awarded. Five percent may be awarded to candidates who have full professional proficiency or are completely fluent as a native speaker in one language other than English; candidates with two or more years of professional experience or volunteer experience in the Peace Corps, AmeriCorps, domestic violence counseling, mental or behavioral health care, homelessness programs, or other social services professions; and candidates who have obtained an associate degree or higher. The state classification plan must recognize that all individuals legally authorized to work under federal law, including DACA recipients, are eligible for employment unless otherwise prohibited.

Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival Recipients and Civil Service. DACA recipients are qualified to apply for any kind of city firefighter, city police, sheriff's office, or Fish and Wildlife officer civil service position. Peace officers and corrections officers employed by a general authority Washington law enforcement agency, or a limited authority Washington law enforcement agency have the authority to possess and carry firearms, subject to the written firearms policy created by the agency employing the officer. A law enforcement agency that employs a person who is a lawful permanent resident or a DACA recipient must ensure that it has a written firearms policy authorizing the possession and carry of firearms by individuals employed as officers. Agencies that hire DACA recipients in positions with city firefighters, city police, or sheriff's offices, or as Fish and Wildlife officers may not be held liable for breach of contract if changes in federal law prohibit the agency from employing a DACA recipient

WORKFORCE INTIATIVES:

• One Washington ERP Implementation: This initiative aims to replace outdated and fragmented financial, procurement, budget, human resources, and payroll systems with the unified Workday solution. State agencies are in process of remediating systems in preparation for the implementation of Phase 1 A - Financials and readying for Phase 2 B - Human Capital Management. The primary goals of the ERP are to improve efficiency, data accuracy, and decision-making capabilities across state agencies.
• Enhanced employee experience assessment:  State Human Resources, in coordination with state agencies, implemented an enhanced employee engagement and employee exit surveys using the Qualtrics platform. This initiative is part of a broader effort to improve state employees' work environment, satisfaction, and overall experience. Qualtrics is a robust platform for creating and administering surveys, allowing for detailed data collection and analysis at both the enterprise and agency levels. This helps in understanding the needs, expectations, and challenges faced by state employees.  By analyzing survey data, the state government can identify key trends and areas needing improvement. For example, trends such as organizational culture, outcomes of return-to-office policies, and strategies to support frontline employees are explored.

Last Updated: 07/31/2024
Time Period: N/A
Update Frequency: annually (end of fiscal year)