Baltimore County Public Library supervisors seek right to bargain; library CEO warns of conflicts and county fiscal impacts

Delegate Kathy Forbes presented House Bill 1071 at the Feb. 21 delegation meeting to enable Baltimore County Public Library (BCPL) supervisors to organize as a second bargaining unit and engage in collective bargaining if they choose.

Supporters — including supervisors and representatives of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers — told the delegation that supervisors who move into management currently lose union protections and that many jurisdictions allow separate supervisory bargaining units. Anita Bass, a BCPL circulation worker and local union official, said supervisors should have the same right to unionize as non‑supervisory staff and that supervisors sometimes remain involved in day‑to‑day concerns that collective bargaining can address.

Proponents characterized the bill as enabling legislation that does not require supervisors to organize; it would provide parity with recent statewide changes that permitted two bargaining units in other library systems.

Opponents — including BCPL CEO Sonia Alcantara Antoine and a county representative from the Cornerstone lobbying firm — said the county and library worked in ‘‘good faith’’ on the original 2021 BCPL collective bargaining law and that the current bill would create conflicts of interest. The CEO told the delegation that supervisors and managers are an extension of library administration: they are involved in hiring, firing, discipline, employee evaluations and grievance handling, and in negotiating or implementing policy. Allowing supervisors to unionize, she said, “would create a clear conflict of interest” and could prompt other county unions to seek parity, producing fiscal and operational consequences for the county, BCPL and the library board.

Why it matters: The bill pits supervisors’ desire for parity and representation against administration concerns about operational integrity and county fiscal exposure. BCPL’s attorney and CEO said the current local law was negotiated with county code language that deliberately excluded confidential employees, managers and supervisors; changing that provision, they warned, could have cascading effects across other county bargaining units.

Next steps: The delegation conducted a hearing with statements for and against the bill; no vote was taken. Library leadership said it had offered compromise language in ongoing discussions and encouraged continued bargaining and dialogue rather than statutory change at this time.