Contract negotiations ongoing between COBI, union officials

Published 1:30 am Monday, March 16, 2026

Contract negotiations have dragged on between the City of Bainbridge Island and IAM District 160 – Local 282, the union representing roughly 80 city employees, after their previous contract expired last December.

Employees have been working without a contract, and union officials have met with city officials 13 times since negotiations started in September 2025, IAM 160 directing business representative Steve Miller said.

Miller didn’t elaborate on the types of changes workers would like to see addressed due to the active status of contract negotiations; however, he said wages are a major concern for union members.

Damarys Guzman, a city permit specialist and IAM member who works in Planning and Community Development, shared her concerns as part of public comment at the Feb. 10 City Council meeting.

Guzman said she loves her job despite the commute from Port Orchard to BI. She supports a COLA (cost of living adjustment) and doesn’t feel it covers the full scope of what city staff are required to do.

“Over the past several years, many of us have taken on more responsibility, more complexity, and more pressure, often while departments remained understaffed. We’ve adapted, because that’s what public servants do. We show up and keep the work moving forward. In Planning and Community Development, we are often the first point of contact for residents during some of the most stressful moments of their lives, whether they’re building a home, starting a business, or trying to understand complex regulations. Our work requires experience, accuracy, and care and directly affects how people experience their local government,” she said.

Joanne Mendenhall, an associate city planner and bargaining committee member, spoke in support of additional compensation as part of public comment at the March 10 council meeting.

“As you know, we are in the middle of our contract negotiations, and we are actually very close to having a tentative agreement. We just need a little bit more to get us there. I ask the council to please consider authorising additional compensation,” she said. “I understand why the city might look at the data they have and think that offering an average wage should be enough. But what COBI asks of its employees is not average. We have been wrestling with some very high turnover.”

Regarding the status of contract negotiations, IAM 160 union officials provided the Bainbridge Island Review with the following statement:

“While the City Council sets the policies, it’s the employees of the city who make those policies work every day. We’re simply asking for a fair agreement that helps retain the people who serve this community. To date, our members have made meaningful movement in negotiations to try to reach a fair agreement. At this point, the remaining difference represents a very small portion of the city’s overall budget ( less than half a percentage point), and we believe there is a reasonable path to resolving it. Now we need to see some movement from the city so we can get this across the finish line. Also, there has been a lot of discussion recently about housing affordability on Bainbridge Island. The reality is that many city employees who serve this community can’t afford to live here and have to commute from other areas. We hope the city will recognize the importance of supporting the employees who make this community function, and one way to recognize this is by offering a fair wage.”

City communications coordinator Shannon Hays said negotiations are ongoing and the city is committed to the process.

Councilmember Lara Lant previously served as an IAM 160 union steward and participated in three rounds of contract negotiations between COBI and IAM over roughly 14 years as a city employee.

“I am pro-city staff, and I’m pro-represented staff. I know they work very hard, and they often have their direction changed. Well, I know this for a fact, that every time new city councilmembers come in, your work priorities change…your projects may change radically, and that’s a really difficult position to be in, to be working for a couple years on something and then having a 180 pulled on you to do something else entirely. So from the council standpoint, I love that the staff showed up to show the council that their contract has not yet been wrapped up, that they are working without a contract,” she said.

Now, as a councilmember, Lant said she isn’t involved in the day-to-day negotiations; rather, the council as a whole will review the final contract and vote on it, adding, “It’s not a good look for any of us to have the contract this far overdue. It’s not unnoticed by the council, but we do trust that both sides of the table are trying to work this out. I do have confidence that they will work it out in a way that is beneficial to both sides,” she said.