AFSCME Local 1899 Holds Howard County Schools Accountable for Stolen Wages, Wins Big at Arbitration

AFSCME Staff

Feb. 3, 2026

Photo of members of AFSCME Local 1899 in green shirts standing together in a group

Nearly $350,000 dollars of workers’ hard-earned pay will be paid out, marking a huge win for AFSCME Local 1899 members standing strong and holding the Howard County Schools accountable for stolen wages related to overtime and emergency pay.

When members of Local 1899 realized that weekend hours were not being properly counted towards overtime hours, they filed a grievance to resolve the matter. Howard County Schools refused to resolve the dispute, and the case went to arbitration where an independent arbitrator agreed that Howard County Schools violated labor law and owed the workers compensation for the miscalculated hours.

“This was a huge, huge win for our Local 1899. We felt that HCPSS was wrong in how they were paying us, and the arbitrator agreed,” said Glenda Robertson, President of Local 1899 and lead custodian at Wilde Lake Middle School. “Hopefully this puts HCPSS on notice that we will not tolerate them wrongfully taking money from us.”

Additionally, Local 1899 was able to use this arbitration win to clarify emergency callback procedures and make sure that all callbacks are considered “emergencies” and will be paid out at the emergency rate of twice the workers’ regular pay. This agreement also means that many affected workers will receive payouts for emergency callbacks they worked but were not paid fairly for.

“This is one of the many ways that a strong union contract makes a difference in people’s lives,” said Patrick Moran, President of AFSCME Maryland Council 3. “Workers at Howard County Schools are getting paid what is owed to them, and that wouldn’t be possible without a strong contract and grievance and arbitration process to hold employers accountable.”

Payouts on both issues –– stolen overtime wages and emergency callback pay –– have already begun, and more are expected soon.

Currently, Local 1899 members are in negotiations with the school on their new contract that will take effect in July, fighting for fair pay, better policies on emergency callbacks, and more.