Exciting news! Newport News City Council will be voting on collective bargaining (also known as contract negotiations) for city workers at the Council meeting on Tuesday, July 14, at 7 pm at City Council Chambers behind City Hall at 2400 Washington Ave, 23607.
We need NNEA members and other public education supporters to help pack the room in #Red4Ed in support of this basic labor right that would allow city workers such as firefighters, police officers, public works employees, and more to negotiate for fair contracts.
Winning collective bargaining for city workers will put a lot of pressure on the School Board to follow suit for school employees. If we support collective bargaining for our comrades in the city’s public sector unions, they will support collective bargaining for us when it comes before the School Board!
Citizens can sign up to speak for up to 3 minutes during public comments at the Council meeting. Even if you prefer not to speak, it makes a huge difference to attend in #Red4Ed so that City Council sees NNEA support in the audience!
Visit https://nngov.civicweb.net/Portal/ for City Council meeting agendas.
Teacher and staff working conditions are student learning conditions, so collective bargaining / contract negotiations directly benefits students by allowing school employees to negotiate for things like smaller class sizes, more planning time, reduced unnecessary testing, improved safety precautions, stronger disciplinary consequences, etc. Negotiating contracts allows those of us working on the front lines in our public schools to use our experience and expertise to improve teaching and learning conditions. Private sector workers in Virginia and most American public employees outside the South already have the right to negotiate for fair contracts. The United Nations considers collective bargaining a human right. Bans on public sector collective bargaining in the South are a relic of Jim Crow. Many African-Americans became teachers and municipal workers after Reconstruction and segregationists in the South responded by banning collective bargaining rights.
Learn more about collective bargaining / contract negotiations:
Newport News Education Association 
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