PORTSMOUTH, Va. — City workers in Portsmouth took the spirit of Labor Day to heart, with several unions joining together to discuss the future of collective bargaining.

Portsmouth remains the only Hampton Roads city to allow collective bargaining. In 2023, city council members narrowly voted to authorize it. But in the years since, workers said talks have stalled and little progress has been made to enact it.

"All we know is that they've had briefings about it in closed sessions with what the ordinance will outline, and the scope of what it will look like," said Kurt Detrick, the president of Portsmouth Professional Firefighters and EMS. "But other than that, nothing is getting done."

Unions from across Portsmouth met on Monday to maintain the pressure on city council. Advocates of coll

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