What is collective bargaining? According to Merriam Webster, collective bargaining is negotiation between an employer and a labor union, usually on wages, hours and working conditions. But, in practice, it is much more than that for the thousands of communities across the United States that benefit, keeping them safer and helping local governments operate more efficiently and fairly.

When you have an emergency and dial 9-1-1, you count on Alexandria City to have enough fire fighters, with the right tools and equipment, to show up quickly and to help your family, business and property. Collective bargaining helps ensure that your emergency is handled by professionals swiftly and effectively by giving a collective voice to the experts – the trained professionals – on the best way to meet your needs in an emergency.

Collective bargaining is collaborative decision-making between the experts who deliver services and city administrators who oversee programs. This type of teamwork – frontline professionals working with managers – benefits all our residents.

Collective bargaining helps eliminate favoritism and patronage in government jobs and offers a fairer system, bringing democratic values into workplaces and, more recently, increasing employment access and equity for marginalized workers.

Collective bargaining helps retain the best and most experienced employees, providing better, more efficient service and lower expenses for recruitment and training of new fire fighters, which currently costs the city about $2 million a year.

The foundation of collaborative bargaining goes beyond discussions about wages and benefits and addresses ways to better serve our neighborhoods. Collective bargaining provides fire fighters a greater voice on the direction of public safety in Alexandria City and will improve the quality of life for everyone who lives, works or visits here.

FOR SAFETY, FAIRNESS AND EFFICIENCY IN ALEXANDRIA CITY, SUPPORT COLLECTIVE BARGAINING.