Manassas City School Board approves resolution barring collective bargaining after hours of public comment

The Manassas City School Board voted to approve Resolution R2025-03, a measure that does not authorize collective bargaining for Manassas City Public Schools, after extended public comment and more than an hour of board discussion. The motion to approve the resolution was made by Mrs. Breggia and seconded by Mrs. Spald, and the board approved the measure following a show-of-hands vote.

The action followed a lengthy public-comment period in which teachers, union leaders and community members urged the board to allow collective bargaining and residents and some board members warned of financial and operational risks. Anna Demaria, identified in public comment as president of the Manassas Education Association, told the board, “When educators are empowered, our students thrive.” Several classroom teachers and union leaders echoed that view, saying collective bargaining would give staff a legally enforceable seat at the table. Other speakers urged caution, citing estimated legal and staffing costs the division provided to the board.

Deputy Superintendent Craig Gaffeller presented staff analysis and cost estimates during the discussion. He said current state law gives local school boards the authority to decide whether to authorize collective bargaining and that the state provided no funding for any costs tied to bargaining. He told the board that outside counsel and peer divisions had advised the district to plan for added legal and administrative costs if bargaining were authorized. Gaffeller summarized likely new positions and estimated legal expenses, saying negotiations could take two to four years and that legal costs could range from roughly $256,100 to $993,075 depending on duration and scope. He also outlined a proposed staffing plan that would add several new positions—chief negotiating officer, chief legal officer, labor relations coordinator, labor specialist, budget/payroll analyst and an administrative assistant—if collective bargaining were implemented.

Board members who supported the resolution said they were acting out of fiscal prudence and concern about the limits of current state law. In debate before the vote, one board member said the commonwealth’s current framework could leave local divisions unable to raise additional revenue to pay costs associated with bargaining and pointed to neighboring districts that have seen budget and service impacts after implementing CBAs.

Board members who opposed the resolution framed the vote as shutting down a conversation before it started. In public comment and in board debate several teachers and union leaders said they had not yet presented demands and asked for a chance to negotiate. Teacher Shaniqua Williams told the board the district had “launched a campaign of misinformation” and urged them to allow bargaining. David Keller, an Osborne High School teacher, said he wanted “paid paternal leave, fair retirement, and job protections.”

After hearing public comment and staff presentations, the board approved the resolution that does not authorize collective bargaining. The board also agreed to create a formal "meet-and-confer" process next school year intended to structure regular meetings between division representatives and employee association leaders. Gaffeller described the proposed meet-and-confer process as four work sessions (a kickoff to collect priorities, two problem-solving sessions, and a final work session to publish responses) that would include classroom teachers, ESOL and special-education representatives, support staff and central-office staff and be facilitated by a neutral party.

The board’s action will not change existing employee grievance procedures or other local input channels immediately; staff said the meet-and-confer regulation will be developed and that the superintendent will report outcomes back to the board. The resolution was presented and passed as an item of formal action; board members supplemented the vote with comments both in favor and opposed to the policy.

Key details from the meeting: - Motion: that the School Board of the City of Manassas approve Resolution R2025-03 regarding employee-management relations and collective bargaining. Motion introduced by Mrs. Breggia and seconded by Mrs. Spald. - Staff presentation: Deputy Superintendent Craig Gaffeller summarized statutory background, possible timeline and staffing and legal costs associated with bargaining; counsel estimated negotiations could last two to four years and legal costs could range from roughly $256,100 to $993,075 depending on length and scope. - Outcome: Resolution approving that collective bargaining is not authorized in Manassas City Public Schools was approved by the board; the division will implement a formal meet-and-confer process.

The vote and the surrounding debate underscored sharply different views in the community about the best way to secure teacher retention, compensation and working conditions. Supporters said a contract would protect staff and stabilize staffing; opponents cautioned that the division lacks budgetary flexibility to absorb the new recurring costs associated with an exclusive bargaining arrangement under current state law. The board’s new meet-and-confer plan sets a schedule for structured dialogue but stops short of authorizing negotiation toward a binding contract.