Collective bargaining advances in Prince William; 5,000 employees would be affected

Triggered by its police and fire departments, leaders in Prince William County will create a new policy that allows its local government employees to collectively bargain for higher wages.

Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun counties, and Alexandria city made similar moves this year after the General Assembly voted to allow collective bargaining for local government employees, reversing the 1970’s-era ban on the practice.

Starting in January, the Prince William Board of County Supervisors will deliberate over what employees may negotiate, including salary and benefits in the coming months. With Democrats voting in favor and Republicans balking, Supervisors voted to move forward after county public safety employees trigged the vote by requesting collective bargaining on October 7.

State law gave Supervisors 120 days to respond to the request.

“This is just the beginning of the process of work sessions and determining what we do,” said Board Chair At-large Ann Wheeler. Supportive of the prospect, Wheeler said the county would find the resources for the program “when we institute collective bargaining.”

According to Deputy County Executive Michelle Casciato, the county’s public safety employees are unhappy with what they say are low wages. In 2020, county employees saw “sweeping” pay increases after public safety employees pushed for higher wages, leading to a comprehensive study of the organization, resulting in a payscale reclassification for employees. All, including part-time employees, got a raise.

If implemented, collective bargaining will replace the county’s “meet and confer” process, where county department managers meet with the County Executive to discuss employee needs, morale, pay, and benefits.

The County Executive must create a new collective bargaining office should the Board adopt a negotiation policy, costing taxpayers an estimated $1.7 million annually. “If I’m a betting woman, I will bet that number is going to grow,” said Coles District Supervisor Yesli Vega, who voted against the measure.

Neabsco District Supervisor Victor Angry voted to advance deliberations. Angry, a volunteer firefighter, says civilian employees should bargain for wages and benefits, but public safety employees should not.

“It’s not our place to come in and demand what we want more of because when we raise our hands to come in and do these jobs, that’s not what we do,” said Angry.

If adopted, all county employees would use the collective bargaining process, said Casciato. However, under a Virginia State Supreme Court ruling, she added that unions could not force employees to pay regular dues.

While public safety employees may not be happy with pay, the majority have not looked elsewhere for new jobs. The turnover rate for sworn public safety employees is lower than that for civilian county employees.

“Our turnover rates are well within norms,” said County Executive Christopher Martino. “When we lose poeple, we get new people from other jurisdictions.”

This year, county leaders held multiple information sessions about the implications of collective bargaining, introducing county employees to the process and outlining what could change should Supervisors adopt a new policy.

Out of 5,000 county employees, only 10 submitted comments about collective bargaining. A YouTube video to educate employees about the process received just 250 views.

“It’s a very low number of people who are engaging in a discussion on a decision that is going to affect the taxpayers in the county greatly,” said Vega.