The City of Alexandria on Saturday became the first jurisdiction in the Commonwealth of Virginia to pass a collective bargaining ordinance.
The ordinance gives city employees the right to bargain about most workplace issues, including pay, benefits, grievances and other disputes.
According to a memo from City Manager Mark Jinks, the ordinance is likely to cost the city money. "The fiscal impact of a shift to a collective bargaining environment is likely to be material both in the short and long term, as personnel costs comprise some two-thirds of the overall City operating expenses. It is expected that collective bargaining agreements will result in City employee pay and benefits likely being higher than they otherwise would have been absent collective bargaining," Jinks wrote. However, the City does retain the right to defund union agreements in times of true need like a recession or a pandemic.
Councilman Canek Aguirre on Saturday noted that the ordinance was truly a "collective" effort among city leaders, staff and labor unions who had to work together to create the framework.
Council member Mo Seifeldein echoed Aguirre's sentiments, saying, "I want to point out, as many members have said — and we had people from Arlington come and speak — the importance of what we're doing in Alexandria, which really demonstrates and shows that despite our differences, when it comes down to it that Alexandria is not afraid to lead and be the first and set precedent not only for ourselves but ... for the Commonwealth as a whole."
When the city ordinance was first proposed in February, it was very limited in scope in terms of both who it would include and what topics would be open for collective bargaining and union representation. That changed significantly in the past two months after extensive discussions and feedback from city staff.
A coalition of organizations representing employees, residents and political leaders worked with the Alexandria City Council to improve the ordinance after it was first proposed by the city manager in February. No longer resembling the infamous Wisconsin Act 10 rammed through by former Governor Scott Walker, the ordinance now more closely aligns with the Federal Public Service Freedom to Negotiate Act, as well as collective bargaining ordinances that exist in other jurisdictions in the Washington D.C. metropolitan area," according to AFSCME Council 20 officials.
The AFSCME represents more than 1.4 million workers in Virginia across a wide variety of industries.
Nelva Hernandez, a city employee, said she believes the changes set the tone for a respectful and supportive relationship between the city and its employees, according to the AFSCME press release. “When I first learned about the ordinance, I was disappointed that bargaining topics were limited to wages and benefits, because my commitment to my work is about so much more than just wages. My job is not just a paycheck, it’s a calling,” she said.
AFSCME Council 20 Executive Director Robert Hollingsworth, who represents Washington D.C. public employees, is actively engaged in organizing Alexandria city workers. "On behalf of the thousands of AFSCME Council 20 public employees, we commend the mayor and city council for hearing our concerns. And we look forward to working with them on an ordinance that serves as the leading example for cities and counties across the Commonwealth," he said.
