CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA (CVILLE RIGHT NOW)- According to Virginia Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell, Gov. Abigail Spanberger will veto a bill that would have expanded collective bargaining to most public sector employees in Virginia.
In an interview with CBS6 Richmond, Surovell said he was “informed” that Spanberger would veto the bill. The Governor’s office did not immediately confirm the veto.
Under current Virginia law, localities must give workers permission before any collective bargaining can occur.
In March, the Virginia General Assembly passed HB1263 and SB378.
The bill would create a public employee relations board, an impartial body that can hear disputes and render binding arbitration decisions.
It also codifies which employees can collectively bargain in Virginia, and what can be bargained for, instead of leaving it up to localities.
In April, Spanberger returned the bill to the assembly with amendments, edits that labor leaders said dramatically weakened the legislation. Wednesday, the assembly rejected those changes and sent the bill back to Spanberger in its original form, giving the Governor a month to either sign it into law or veto it. If she chose to do nothing, the bill would have become law.
State and local education and labor leaders had urged her to sign the legislation.
