Another EWUA operator resigns

Just days ago, more than 118 members signed an open letter requesting an independent third-party workplace investigation into interactions between management, the Board, and staff. The request followed a May 19 Board meeting attended by more than 75 members concerned about employee turnover, workplace conditions, and the long-term stability of the utility.

The Board declined that request, citing ongoing union negotiations and previous investigations that it says found no wrongdoing. However, the operators’ union representative publicly stated that a workplace investigation is not prohibited by ongoing contract negotiations and that the Board remains free to communicate with staff regarding workplace concerns.

Since October 2025, EWUA has lost 4 operators — 1 terminated and 3 resigned — representing approximately 25 years of institutional knowledge gone in less than a year. During the same period, EWUA also lost a 4-year office employee who cited many of the same concerns raised by operations staff.

At present, EWUA appears to have:

• 4 remaining full-time operators with more than one year of experience on Orcas’s water systems;
• 1 experienced operator who previously resigned but agreed to remain temporarily until July 1 to support the Rosario system;
• 1 Operations Manager who lives off-island and has been with EWUA for approximately 8 months; and
• 1 Operator In Training.

These employees are responsible not only for operating and maintaining the Eastsound water system 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, but also for meeting EWUA’s ongoing satellite management responsibilities for the Rosario, Olga, and Doe Bay water systems.

To be clear, there is no indication that drinking water quality is currently unsafe.

But members need to be asking serious questions about staffing sustainability, emergency response capacity, employee retention, and long-term operational stability.

EWUA’s operators publicly warned the community that morale was collapsing and that additional resignations were likely. Despite those warnings, the Board declared the concerns meritless.

Now another operator is leaving.

This is not about personalities or politics. It is about whether EWUA leadership is responding appropriately to the continued loss of experienced staff responsible for delivering one of our community’s most essential public services.

We are calling for accountability, transparency, and urgency before the situation deteriorates further.

Members of Eastsound, Rosario, Olga, and Doe Bay need to contact the Board and General Manager and ask direct questions about operator retention, staffing plans, workplace conditions, and operational continuity.

The next EWUA Board meeting is June 16.

If you are concerned about the future of your water system, plan to attend.

The community requested an independent review.

The Board declined.

Now another operator is resigning.

Members deserve answers.