The U.S. House passed a bill this week giving collective bargaining rights to police, firefighters and other public safety officers throughout the country. Virginia police, fire and other public safety unions — which do not have the statutory authority to negotiate — would gain dramatic new clout should the legislation pass the Senate and become law.
H.R. 980, which passed Monday with a 314-97 vote, would give the commonwealth’s unions new standing to wrangle with police, fire and rescue agencies over wages, working conditions and benefits.
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Collective bargaining is forbidden by law in Virginia, and local union officials instead say they have only the right of “collective begging” with their employers. Fairfax County’s police union has frequently said that the lack of bargaining power has led to a disparity in compensation with other similarly sized agencies, such as the Montgomery County Police Department.
“It’s a basic level of collective bargaining,” said Marshall Thielen, head of the Fairfax Coalition of Police. “Everyone will be on par at the same basic level.”
John Niemiec, vice president of Fairfax County Professional Fire Fighters & Paramedics, said the legislation could help secure supplements for the cost of health care for firefighters before the age of 55.
“We don’t want to strike,” he said. “We just want to have the ability to sit down with our employers, to talk about workplace issues, to talk about compensation.”
Critics say the bill amounts to an unfunded mandate on local governments that would be passed on to taxpayers and force union representation onto employees.
“Labor supporters contend that you’re going to get higher wages,” said James Sherk of the conservative Heritage Foundation. More powerful unions also would tilt promotions within departments toward a seniority system and away from merit-based advancement, he said.
