FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Feldman Strategies, team@feldmanstrategies.com
March 19, 2026
Baltimore City Workers Vote 94.5% to Ratify Historic Union Contract, Delivering for City Union Workers After 9 Months of Negotiating with the City
The new union contract delivers substantial salary increases, improved workplace safety, and stronger benefits for city employees
BALTIMORE – Thousands of Baltimore City workers, represented by the City Union of Baltimore, Local 800 – the largest union representing City Employees and an affiliate of AFT Maryland – have overwhelmingly ratified their union contract, voting 94.5% in favor of the new agreement. Delivering historic gains across wages, workplace safety, and benefits, the hard-fought wins in this contract ensure no worker is left behind.
After months of negotiations – and well over a year since the union first requested the city to start bargaining – the City Union of Baltimore calculates that workers will see an average wage increase of 21% over three years (life of the contract), with individual increases varying above or below that figure depending on worker step and classification.
This represents a long-overdue commitment to the people who keep Baltimore running. For the first time ever, the salary pay scale expands from 4 tiers to 25 steps, ensuring fair and equitable pay for all city employees. The three-year contract also strengthens transparent pathways for promotions, while securing a 2% Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) in each of the final two years of the contract – on top of the increases seen by transitioning to a new scale – along with increased hazard pay and meal allowances.
"Baltimore is not the city it is without its workers – their dedication cannot be overstated, and their contributions should never be undervalued,” said City Union of Baltimore President Antoinette Ryan-Johnson. “The workers who show up for this city every single day have earned every bit of this, and then some.”
The agreement also delivers major wins for workplace safety. Employees in supervisory and safety roles will receive 30-Hour OSHA Outreach Training, and a new Workplace Safety Committee gives city workers a direct voice to raise and address safety concerns on the job.
“Our city workers are the backbone of Baltimore – and this agreement honors that, delivering historic wage increases, stronger protections, and the voice they have always deserved,” said AFT Maryland President Kenya Campbell. “They never stop showing up for this city. They have earned a contract reflective of their commitment.”
The City Union of Baltimore spent months in extremely tough negotiations at the bargaining table with city leadership. After securing major victories, Baltimore City workers have officially ratified a contract that delivers the wages, protections, and respect workers deserve.
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