A massive change is on the way for public sector workers, assuming everything goes their way this legislative session.
I’m talking about legislation from state Del. Kathy Tran (D-Springfield) and Democratic Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell of Fairfax County to lift the ban on collective bargaining for state employees and expand collective bargaining rights to all local employees.
Similar legislation made it to former Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s desk last year but the private equity executive-turned-Republican politician vetoed it. Things look more promising now that Gov. Abigail Spanberger is in office, though I haven’t seen her come out in support of the effort and I haven’t heard back from her press office about it.
In April, when she was a candidate, The Washington Post reported:
While union leaders called for giving all public employees the right to collective bargaining, Spanberger spoke generally of making “sure more Virginians can negotiate for the benefits and fair treatment that they’ve earned.” Her campaign declined to say if she supports the push for public-sector unions.
More recently as governor, Spanberger has said she wants to make Virginia the “best state for business and the best state for working families.”
Giving hundreds of thousands of state and local employees more say about their workplace rules and the right to advocate for better pay at the negotiating table would go a long way toward that goal.
As the debate unfolds about public sector bargaining, we will surely hear Republicans raise fears about where taxpayer money is going and fears about teachers going on strike. But strikes are prohibited in the legislation.
And when it comes to public dollars, underpaid school teachers and state employees providing services so many Virginians depend on surely deserve more. Not to mention, whatever raises they win would still require approval from either the General Assembly or their local governing body.
I spent last Friday in Richmond where campus workers marched, sang, and rallied for collective bargaining.
