Union talks should be transparent

In a shocking 8-1 ruling, the state Supreme Court has given its official blessing to a secretive process that allows the offers and counteroffers leading to more than a billion dollars in taxpayer-funded compensation to remain secret until after the state budget is signed into law.

By failing to uphold the clear intent of Washington’s robust public records law, expect more labor unrest, not less, as a result of this ruling.

For example, Washington state employees walked off the job last year to protest the compensation offers from then-Gov. Jay Inslee. They called the state’s offer disrespectf...