Staff members at the Seattle Art Museum (SAM) have voted to unionize in a landslide National Labor Relations Board election, with 97 employees (94% of eligible voters) supporting the formation of Seattle Art Museum Workers United (SAMWU). The new union will represent over 130 full- and part-time workers across SAM's three locations, including the Seattle Asian Art Museum and the Olympic Sculpture Park. Workers first announced their intent to unionize in May, citing dissatisfaction with wages, at-will employment, and limited healthcare benefits. The museum declined to voluntarily recognize the union, leading to the formal election. SAMWU is represented by the Washington Federation of State Employees/AFSCME Council 28.
This unionization effort matters because it reflects a growing wave of labor organizing among museum workers across the United States, who are demanding better wages, benefits, and job protections. The vote comes a year and a half after SAM's security guards went on a 12-day strike that secured a significant wage increase. The outcome could set a new standard for museum labor relations, as SAMWU plans to negotiate for a "progressive collective bargaining agreement" that addresses systemic issues in the cultural sector, where many institutions rely on underpaid and precariously employed staff.