A new Washington state policy allowing strikers to collect unemployment benefits has paid out $604,491 so far in 2026, but a potential Boeing strike could subject the program to a far more serious trial, according to a report published this month by the Washington Policy Center. The analysis warns that the Unemployment Trust Fund, traditionally reserved for workers who lose their jobs involuntarily, is now also supporting people who choose not to work due to strikes.
As of September 14, the state Employment Security Department reported that 174 striking workers have received benefits in 2026, covering 814 paid weeks, according to the report. That figure rose only modestly from August 5, when 151 claimants had collected benefits totaling $565,714 across 741 weeks. Eligible strikers can claim up to six weeks of unemployment insurance, and roughly 57% of all striking claimants so far have drawn the full six-week allowance. The modest growth occurred even as more than 100 workers at the Embassy Suites by Hilton Seattle Pioneer Square walked off the job for 85 days, with many expected to seek benefits.
The report highlights that workers in the approximately 17,000-member Boeing bargaining units represented by the Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace voted overwhelmingly on August 21 to authorize a strike. If all 17,000 workers were Washington claimants receiving six weeks at the current $1,208 maximum weekly benefit, the theoretical payout would surpass $123 million, the analysis notes. The report states that SPEEA sent a September 1 message to members explaining that "SPEEA members helped lead a coalition of Washington state labor unions that successfully expanded Unemployment Insurance benefits to workers on strike," and that the union is "preparing additional UI resources for members in the event of a strike."
The concern stems from the fund's existing financial pressures. The Unemployment Trust Fund held approximately $3.6 billion at the end of the second quarter, but the state agency has already projected that the fund will drop below the statutory solvency threshold that triggers additional employer taxes, according to the report. Strike benefits are entering a system already facing billions of dollars in ordinary unemployment obligations. The report argues that organized labor sought and planned for this law change, which it characterizes as harmful to businesses and most workers in the state. Large strike claims can affect cash flow and ultimately influence employer tax calculations, even though employers whose workers receive strike benefits are charged 100% of those costs. The report recommends that lawmakers repeal the law before payouts climb higher, warning that helping a minority of workers or their unions ends up hurting the majority of workers and businesses statewide.