04/16/2026
RICHMOND, Va. —The Virginia Public Sector Labor coalition — which comprises Virginia AFL-CIO; American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME); American Federation of Teachers; American Federation of Teachers-American Association of University Professors; Communications Workers of America (CWA); SEIU Virginia 512; Virginia Education Association (VEA); Virginia Professional Fire Fighters (VPFF); UNITE HERE; and United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 400 — today issued the following joint statement calling on the Virginia General Assembly to reject Gov. Abigail Spanberger’s proposed changes to historic collective bargaining legislation that would allow more than half a million public service workers — including teachers, firefighters, county and city workers, state workers, and home care workers — the freedom to collectively bargain for fair wages, benefits and working conditions:
“For the past six years, the Virginia Public Sector labor coalition, which represents hundreds of thousands of workers across the Commonwealth, has fought alongside state legislators to secure a seat at the table for those workers. The comprehensive collective bargaining legislation that passed the General Assembly furthered the promise of affordability and was a historic step toward dignity, fairness, and a voice on the job.
“While the governor could have opted to strengthen the bill by amending it to include all higher education workers, she instead chose to exclude more workers, diminish worker protections, and force many local public service workers — including teachers, firefighters and social workers — to wait until the next decade for collective bargaining rights. The dozens of changes made to the bill weaken the ability of workers to bargain meaningful contracts.
“The governor’s changes would remove many of the guaranteed worker protections from the law and put their future in the hands of the uncertain regulatory process. This move bypasses the General Assembly and grants any governor the power to derail collective bargaining without a single public vote. Under the governor’s substitute version of the bill, many workers who currently have collective bargaining agreements would actually have fewer protections than they do now. For example, in the event of a workplace dispute between a worker and management, the General Assembly’s version of the bill allows binding arbitration, which provides a fair and final roadmap for resolving conflicts, protecting workers from management overreach while ensuring employers have the labor stability and certainty they need to keep public services running smoothly. In the governor’s version of the bill, the decision of a neutral third-party arbiter would only be considered advisory rather than binding.
“The freedom to bargain for a fair contract should belong to the workers who power our Commonwealth, not to politicians. Collective bargaining is the standard in a majority of states and throughout the private sector; it is a proven tool for building a stable, professional workforce. Right now, we are losing many of our best teachers and firefighters because they lack a voice on the job. This legislation isn’t just about fairness—it is a critical solution to our public sector retention crisis. By ensuring fair pay and workplace stability, the original bill stands as the session’s most significant win for economic affordability. On behalf of the hundreds of thousands of Virginia workers we represent, we urge the General Assembly to reject this substitute.”
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