A long-coming, sometimes bitter battle over the right to represent thousands of Fairfax County government workers ended in victory last week for one union, even as another cried foul over the election process and results.
Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local Virginia 512 announced last Friday (May 16) that county government workers have elected it as their exclusive bargaining unit for future contract negotiations after the largest organizing push among general government employees in Virginia history.
SEIU says it won with support from 56% of the workers who participated in the election, which was conducted via mail ballots sent to an independent voting service and tallied over Zoom.
If the result is recognized by the county, SEIU Virginia 512’s Fairfax County General Employees Union will be able to negotiate pay, benefits and working conditions for the first time for over 11,000 workers who handle everything from health and social services to parks, libraries and transportation.
“Today, we stood up for ourselves and for the services we provide to our community,” Ellisa Green, a worker in Fairfax County’s School Aged Child Care program, said in a press release. “By forming our union, we’re gaining a real seat at the table to advocate for better staffing, quality jobs, and the resources we need to provide Fairfax residents with the high-quality services they deserve.”
Founded in 2006, the Fairfax County chapter of SEIU came to represent approximately 2,000 workers but, like other public-sector unions, was prohibited from collective bargaining for more than four decades under a 1977 state Supreme Court ruling.
That changed when the Virginia General Assembly passed legislation in 2020 authorizing localities to recognize and collectively bargain with unions. Fairfax County adopted an ordinance in October 2021 that allowed for separate bargaining units representing general government, police and fire department employees.
Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department employees became the first to unionize in November 2022, supporting the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) Local 2068. The police followed suit in January 2023, electing the Southern States Police Benevolent Association (SSPBA) as their representative over the Fraternal Order of Police.
The Board of Supervisors approved labor agreements with both unions that promised pay raises and other benefits in December 2023.
Rival union criticizes election process
Efforts to establish collective bargaining for general county employees, however, have been slower to get off the ground, in part due to the size of the workforce. Under the county’s ordinance, organizations seeking a union election must get signatures from 30% of the employees they hope to represent to qualify.
The rival Fairfax Workers Coalition (FWC), which didn’t make the ballot, filed a lawsuit against the county and Labor Relations Administrator Sarah Miller Espinosa in March questioning her acceptance of a petition SEIU filed on Dec. 31, 2024. The complaint alleges that SEIU might’ve counted some former members as supporters without their consent.
Though the legal battle remains unresolved, with the next hearing set for May 30, FWC Executive Director David Lyons argues that the union election results back up the coalition’s case that actual support for SEIU among county workers is limited.
“The Board of Supervisors may choose, along with the labor relations administrator, to recognize this as a valid election, but I don’t think by any stretch of the imagination that reflects employee sentiment,” Lyons told FFXnow. “What it tells you is 80% of the eligible employees did not even bother to vote, and I’m concerned that a small number of people … are trying to proclaim that they represent the majority of the county workforce.”
Lyons contends that SEIU chose to use mail ballots to reduce turnout. Under the ordinance, which FWC has criticized, bargaining agent elections must be conducted by mail “unless all parties agree otherwise.”
According to SEIU, it received 1,368 “yes” votes, suggesting approximately 2,442 workers cast a ballot, or 22% of the more than 11,000 eligible voters.
For comparison, the firefighters’ unionizing election was conducted electronically and saw 837 ballots cast, or 54.7% of workers eligible to vote, IAFF reported at the time. Nearly 800 voters, or 95.2%, supported unionizing.
The Fairfax Education Association and Fairfax County Federation of Teachers, which partnered to form the Fairfax Education Unions, were elected last June by 96% of instructional workers, including teachers, and about 80% of operational staff, though they didn’t say how many of the 27,500-plus eligible Fairfax County Public Schools employees participated.
Lyons also alleges that SEIU “repeatedly used tactics of intimidation and harassment” to pressure workers to vote for them, including “incessant phone calls, text messages, blocking them at work, following them to the bathroom [and] getting on elevators.”
“We’re very disappointed at both the ordinance, the execution, and finally, with the way the campaign was conducted, where they repeatedly used tactics of intimidation and harassment against county employees,” Lyons said.
He added that the coalition “will continue with our litigation and continue to speak out as long as we’re permitted to regarding the ability to represent county employees fairly and comprehensively.”
SEIU says its campaigning methods were consistent with what would be expected in any election, including phone calls, text messages, mailings and door-by-door visits to encourage voter participation.
Noting that the coalition dropped an initial request for an injunction stopping the election from its lawsuit, SEIU alleges that the FWC engaged in similar tactics, including weekly emails, for a “vote no” campaign that urged employees to “reject union representation in favor of working with them to change the ordinance.”
“When their efforts to block the election failed, the Coalition shifted tactics and began disparaging SEIU Virginia 512 and the integrity of the election process itself,” SEIU said.
Describing the coalition’s actions as “attempts to undermine the vote,” SEIU confirmed FWC representatives weren’t allowed to observe the vote count, because they weren’t an official party in the election. The tally was monitored by the labor relations administrator and six observers each from SEIU and the county’s legal team, and county and union representatives both signed the results.
“The results are clear: a majority of voting employees chose SEIU Virginia 512 to represent them,” the union said. “We are moving forward — united — to begin negotiating a strong first contract that reflects the priorities and values of county workers.”
Preparations for contract negotiations underway
The election results will be verified by the labor relations administrator following a 14-day objection period.
Anticipating starting contract negotiations in June, SEIU Fairfax County has already started gathering feedback from workers, launching a survey last Friday that will remain open through June 6.
“So far, common themes have emerged — including calls for fair pay, job security, paid leave, and pension protection,” the union said. “These priorities reflect the real concerns of workers across the county.”
SEIU hopes collective bargaining will give workers more leverage when advocating for their needs to be addressed during the county’s yearly budget season, particularly with more fiscal challenges likely in store as federal government cuts upend the D.C. region’s economy.
“At a time when proposals like those from the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) raise serious concerns about the future of public services, our message is clear,” Maria Jose Padmore, an SEIU member and human services assistant for the county, said. “Fairfax County general employees are standing together to protect and strengthen the services our communities depend on — with fairness, with respect, and with hope for a better future.”
For fiscal year 2026, which starts July 1, the board adopted a budget on May 6 that avoided some proposed cuts, mostly by introducing a meals tax that will take effect on Jan. 1. Most county employees will receive a 2% cost-of-living increase, but unionized firefighters and police won more substantial pay raises, as promised by their collective bargaining agreements.
A labor contract isn’t an absolute guarantee, though, as FCPS workers learned when the Board of Supervisors declined to give the school system enough funding to cover their planned 7% raises. The school board is scheduled to vote tomorrow (Thursday) on a revised budget that preserves some salary increases at the expense of other services.
