Dr. Singh’s administration has already backed down, agreeing to give our Nursing faculty back pay for the high-demand salary enhancements that they were withholding from every paycheck since July 7, 2025. But the fight to ensure that all faculty get their full salary continues!
The administration of Edmonds College is still refusing to pay the high-demand salary enhancements for eligible faculty that should be paid out in November. These high-demand payments are required by the Workforce Education Investment Act (HB 2158) and Edmonds College received money from the state to pay them. Dr. Singh’s administration is withholding these payments because according to Dr. Singh…
- The State Board of Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC) says they can.
- The issue is currently being bargained.
Dr. Singh’s first claim omits very important details. When the union reached out to the SBCTC, they said that even though there is no obligation from the state to pay these high-demand salary enhancements, “colleges must still comply with contractual obligations.” These high-demand payments are written into a memorandum of understanding that the administration signed with the union, so there is a contractual obligation for the college administration to pay them. This MOU was signed in April 2025, so it has already been negotiated very recently!
Dr. Singh’s second claim is irrelevant, because there is no section of the contract that says that high-demand payments cease during bargaining. In fact, contract law is very clear that the current contract must be followed while the new contract is negotiated. So, in the same way that faculty still get paid during our contract negotiations that start in January, all eligible faculty should be currently receiving their high-demand salary increases while the high-demand negotiations continue.
Impact on Faculty
The state of Washington gave Edmonds College $680,000 to pay these high-demand salary enhancements. This money should be distributed to the eligible faculty in departments like Biology, ROBAI, Allied Health, Math, Construction Management, Culinary, and Accounting. These high-demand payments might not be due until the end of the quarter, but they represent the salary enhancements that we are due for the entire quarter. These eligible faculty are already budgeting for this high-demand salary increase, especially our associate faculty for whom this is a significant percentage of their income. The administration of this college is choosing to keep the high-demand pay that they already owe in violation of the legislative intent of HB 2158 and our contract.
When We Fight, We Win!
Here’s what you can do to help.
- Ask Dr. Singh (amit.singh@edmonds.edu) or VPI Kim Chapman (kim.chapman@edmonds.edu) why they want to keep that $680,000 for themselves.
- Attend the next Board of Trustees meeting on Oct 16, 2025 at 4:15 pm in Room 352 in Gateway Hall and ask them to hold this administration accountable.
- Visit the Union Table on Mondays and Tuesdays from 9 - 11 am in the lobby of Mountlake Terrace Hall or Hazel Miller Hall, where you can…
- Get a button to show your support for faculty!
- Write a postcard to the administration to ask them to pay the full salary of our faculty!
- Get the latest updates on contract negotiations!
If you want to join the fight, contact our VP for Action and Advocacy, Chuck Mueller, at cmmuelle@gmail.com.