Carpenters in western Washington state walked off job sites and picketed Sept. 16 after their contract with the Associated General Contractors of Washington expired a day earlier and members voted to reject a new one.
Between 800 and 1,000 members of the Northwest Carpenters Union were striking, according to Evelyn Shapiro, executive secretary treasurer of the union. The stoppage impacted construction at Microsoft’s main campus and several large build sites in and around Seattle. However, work is continuing on major projects that had no-strike clauses, including Seattle’s future NHL arena, Seattle Public Schools, Sound Transit and the Port of Seattle.