The latest projections of job growth for Washington state aren’t anything to write home about, but the Tri-Cities appear to be a relatively bright spot among a lackluster jobs forecast.

With contract negotiations nearing a critical deadline, hundreds of Washington state workers recently walked off the job for an hour to highlight demands for wage hikes in their next two-year deal.

A new set of worker protections take effect Oct. 1, and state justice officials and business groups are advising business owners to learn what their new obligations are under the law. 

Twin City Foods plans to lay off more than 100 employees as it consolidates its Ellensburg and Pasco plants.

Workers involved in labor disputes must comply with the state’s rigorous job search requirements to receive benefits. This means actively seeking work and recording efforts to find another job. 

Washington state is investing millions in grants to help workers level up through its Job Skills Program and demand for the funding in the most recent cycle was the highest in the program’s 40-year history. 

The Children’s Reading Foundation’s longtime CEO is stepping down and a national search is underway for a successor. 

A group of Mid-Columbia irrigators and the Washington Department of Ecology are sparring over a long-planned housing project for agricultural workers west of Paterson along the Columbia River. 

National meat processor Tyson Foods is downsizing its operations and its plant outside the Tri-Cities is on the block.

Financial records show Trios and Lourdes hospitals in the Tri-Cities still struggling years after private equity firm LifePoint's acquisition.