Oregon
Unemployment benefits for striking workers being considered in Oregon, Washington
Lawmakers in Oregon and Washington are considering whether striking workers should receive unemployment benefits, following recent walkouts by Boeing factory workers, hospital nurses and teachers in the Pacific Northwest that highlighted a new era of American labor activism.
Oregon’s measure would make it the first state to provide pay for picketing public employees — who aren’t allowed to strike in most states, let alone receive benefits for it. Washington’s would pay striking private sector workers for up to 12 weeks, starting after at least two weeks on the line.
“The bottom line is this helps level the playing field,” said Democratic state Sen. Marcus Riccelli, who sponsored Washington’s bill. “Without a social safety net during a strike, workers are faced with tremendous pressure to end the strike quickly or never go on strike in the first place.”
But the bills are raising questions about how they would affect employers, especially amid economic uncertainties tied to federal funding cuts and tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump.
“It’s inappropriate to unbalance the bargaining table in a way that forces employers to pay for the costs of a striking worker,” Lindsey Hueer, government affairs director with the Association of Washington Business, told senators during a committee hearing in February. “Unemployment insurance should be a safety net for workers who have no job to return to.”
So far only two states, New York and New Jersey, give striking workers unemployment benefits. Senate Democrats in Connecticut have revived legislation that would provide financial help for striking workers after the governor vetoed a similar measure last year.
Benefits bills advance but face opposition
The measures in Washington and Oregon have been passed by the state Senate of each and are now in the House. The Washington bill faces its final committee hearings on Friday and Monday.
The Economic Policy Institute, a nonprofit, pro-labor think tank in Washington, D.C., has studied the effects of giving unemployment benefits to striking workers and found it to be good for workers and employers alike, said Daniel Perez, state economic analyst for the organization.
First, he said, lengthy strikes are extremely rare. More than half of U.S. labor strikes end within two days — workers wouldn’t receive pay in those cases — and just 14% last more than two weeks. Second, the policy costs very little — less than 1% of unemployment insurance expenditures in every state that has considered legislation.
Bryan Corliss, spokesperson for the Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace union, told The Associated Press that the big winners would be low-wage workers.
“If low-wage workers had the financial stability to actually go on strike for more than a day or two without risking eviction, we believe that would incentivize companies to actually come to the table and make a deal,” he said.
During a hearing in the Washington House labor committee last week, several Republican lawmakers tried to amend the bill to require striking workers to look for other jobs or to shorten the time covered from 12 weeks to four. The Democratic majority shot those ideas down.
Republican Rep. Suzanne Schmidt said the bill might be good for workers, but it would hurt employers.
“We’ve seen instances of this with the Boeing strike last year for the machinists,” she said. “We had 32,000 people on strike at the same time and if this had been in play it would have cost millions of dollars to cover those workers. Boeing did actually lose billions having the workers on strike for several months.”
The Oregon bill, which also would make striking workers eligible for unemployment benefits after two weeks, sparked a similar debate, both among Democratic and Republican lawmakers as well as constituents, with hundreds of people submitting written testimony.
The state has seen two large strikes in recent years: Thousands of nurses and dozens of doctors at Providence’s eight Oregon hospitals were on strike for six weeks earlier this year, while a 2023 walkout of Portland Public Schools teachers shuttered schools for over three weeks in the state’s largest district.
The Oregon Senate passed the measure largely along party lines, with two Democrats voting against it.
On the Senate floor, Democratic Sen. Janeen Sollman said she worried about the effect on public employers such as school districts, which “do not have access to extra pots of money.” Private employers pay into the state’s unemployment trust fund through a payroll tax, but few public employers do, meaning that they would have to reimburse the fund for any payments made to their workers.
Democratic Sen. Chris Gorsek, who supported the bill, argued it wouldn’t cost public employers more than what they’ve already budgeted for salaries, as workers aren’t paid when they’re on strike. Also, those receiving unemployment benefits get at most 65% of their weekly pay, and benefit amounts are capped, according to a document presented to lawmakers by employment department officials.
“Unemployment insurance is partial wage replacement, so unemployment insurance in and of itself is not an additional cost to the employer,” Gorsek said. “In fact, the only way Senate Bill 916 would yield additional cost for what was already budgeted by the employer is if the employer decided to hire replacement workers.”
___
Rush reported from Portland, Oregon. Associated Press writer Susan Haigh in Hartford, Connecticut, contributed.
PORTLAND, Ore. (KATU) — President Donald Trump campaigned on carrying out what he called the largest deportation operation in American history.
After taking office, his administration quickly ramped up immigration enforcement. Border czar Tom Homan also pledged to focus on so-called sanctuary cities, including Portland. According to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, more than 675,000 people were deported in 2025, while the agency says more than 2 million people “self-deported.”
READ ALSO | Supreme Court hands Trump immigration wins, but birthright citizenship might be different
In Oregon, state data shows state and local agencies experienced a 265% increase in immigration-related requests from federal authorities last year.
So what does that mean for Oregon’s economy?
The state’s chief economist says the effects are beginning to emerge.
Carl Riccadonna, Oregon’s state economist, said immigration enforcement actions are influencing consumer spending and activity across several key industries, though the state cannot yet quantify the overall impact.
“What we’re seeing in terms of immigration action is playing out in either consumption patterns, which we’ve seen in some communities, or in industrial or sectoral activity,” Riccadonna said. “This does then have implications for how we are reading the overall macroeconomy and putting together that revenue forecast.”
Portland police officers walk outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility on Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Portland, Ore. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)
Riccadonna said the effects extend beyond agriculture, an industry that has historically relied on immigrant labor.
“We have certainly, in sector-by-sector analysis, we’re hearing evidence of impacts from immigration in consumption numbers, so retail, groceries, those sorts of things,” Riccadonna said. “There are also significant impacts in the retail sector and leisure and hospitality, restaurants and construction, important legacy industries of Oregon like timber, forestry … and manufacturing has a very large footprint as well.”
While the state is seeing those trends, Riccadonna said economists cannot yet calculate exactly how much immigration enforcement has affected Oregon’s economy.
“We haven’t done an exercise to say, well, this is what the forecast would have been otherwise. We don’t produce counterfactuals … but there’s plenty of anecdotal evidence from the cherry harvest this past summer and stresses elsewhere throughout those specific sectors,” he said.
National data offers additional context.
According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, the recent immigration surge — which the report says mostly comprises immigrants who were not lawful permanent residents, were not eligible to apply for lawful permanent residency based on their current status, and were not admitted on a temporary basis under the Immigration and Nationality Act — generated approximately $10 billion in state and local tax revenue in 2023. During that same period, governments spent nearly $19 billion on services such as schools, shelters and border security.
A damaged car is seen as law enforcement officials work the scene following reports that federal immigration officers shot and wounded people in Portland, Ore., Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)
The Congressional Budget Office also projects the immigration surge that began in 2023 will increase the U.S. labor force by approximately 5.8 million people by 2034 and boost the nation’s economic output by nearly $9 trillion over the next decade.
Riccadonna said Oregon expects to gain a clearer picture of the economic effects as more tax and revenue data becomes available.
This story is part of KATU’s “The Cost of the Crackdown” special, which examines how increased immigration enforcement is affecting Oregon, from businesses and workers to the state’s broader economy.
Oregon Army National Guard soldiers tested a new method of clearing battlefield obstacles during annual training this week by using a heavy-lift drone to remotely deliver and detonate a live explosive charge.
The proof-of-concept demonstration took place June 22 and was led by soldiers with Bravo Company, 741st Brigade Engineer Battalion, 41st Infantry Brigade Combat Team.
The exercise focused on using an unmanned aircraft to carry a live Bangalore torpedo — an explosive device designed to clear wire obstacles — allowing engineers to breach barriers while remaining farther from potential enemy threats.
Army engineers are responsible for creating safe routes for friendly forces by clearing obstacles such as concertina wire and minefields. Traditionally, placing explosive charges requires soldiers to move close to enemy positions, increasing their exposure to danger.
During the demonstration, a heavy-lift drone carried the explosive charge to a wire obstacle before remotely detonating it, successfully creating a lane through the barrier.
The project was the result of several months of planning by the battalion’s drone working group under the direction of battalion commander Lt. Col. Eric Zimmerman. The unit partnered with Ashland-based Lorica Technologies, which provided the heavy-lift drone used during the demonstration.
Lt. Col. Zimmerman said recent conflicts have highlighted the importance of adapting new technologies for the battlefield.
“Watching what’s happening in Ukraine and seeing how innovative they’ve been inspires you to get better and think bigger,” Lt. Col. Zimmerman said.
The team conducted multiple tests before the live demonstration, beginning with inert training devices before progressing to live explosives. Officials said the final test successfully delivered and detonated a two-section Bangalore torpedo.
Lt. Col. Zimmerman credited the project’s success to collaboration between battalion leadership and the soldiers responsible for carrying out the mission.
“I’m really proud,” Lt. Col. Zimmerman said. “The Soldiers of Bravo Company took an idea from the battalion staff and applied their expertise to make that idea functional and effective.”
Military officials said the demonstration highlights how the Oregon Army National Guard is incorporating emerging unmanned aircraft technology into engineer operations. Lessons learned from the project are expected to help shape future training and the Army’s continued integration of drones into combat engineering missions.
The Oregon Army National Guard is made up of citizen-soldiers who serve part time while maintaining civilian careers, attending school or raising families. In addition to federal deployments, Guard members respond to state emergencies such as wildfires, floods and winter storms when activated by the governor.
The Oregon Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at June 25, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Pick 4 numbers from June 25 drawing
1PM: 9-9-6-3
4PM: 5-1-5-7
7PM: 7-4-0-5
10PM: 9-1-2-4
Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
When are the Oregon Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 7:59 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 7:59 p.m. on Tuesday and Friday.
- Pick 4: 1 p.m., 4 p.m., 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. daily.
- Win for Life: 7:30 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Megabucks: 7:29 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by an Oregon editor. You can send feedback using this form.
-
Sports6 minutes ago2026 World Cup Group Scenarios: What Remaining Teams Need To Advance To Round of 32
-
Technology13 minutes agoOhio robot cop retires after zero arrests
-
Business16 minutes agoCommentary: Puncturing the myth of Alan Greenspan, whose policies gave us the Great Recession
-
Entertainment21 minutes agoOn 10th anniversary, Boleros de Noche’s legacy is celebrated by L.A. City Hall
-
Lifestyle28 minutes agoThey started playing L.A. Municipal softball 50 years ago. They’re still at it
-
Politics31 minutes agoNewsom, California Legislature reach $351.7-billion budget deal
-
Sports43 minutes agoRoki Sasaki struggles with command early, Dodgers fall to Padres
-
World51 minutes agoTrump threatens 100% tariffs over EU digital tax
