It’s been a little over a week since Multnomah County enacted a stricter in-person work requirement, and its largest employee union is making its opposition known.

At Thursday’s county board meeting, representatives from AFSCME Local 88 plan to deliver their members’ “vote of no confidence” in Chair Jessica Vega Pederson and the county’s Chief Operating Officer Chris Neal.

Local 88 spokesperson David Kreisman said it’s a symbolic gesture to demonstrate that “county management has lost the trust of its workforce following top-down operational mandates, a lack of transparency, and decisions that prioritize private interests and administrative overhead over frontline workers and essential community services.”

The union, which represents 4,000 of the county’s 6,600 employees, has been vocally opposed to management’s new mandate for all staff to work in-office at least three days a week.

Since remote work took off at the county during the COVID pandemic, county leaders have been trying to bring staff back into the office. According to the county, about 25% of workers are entirely remote — and about 40% have a hybrid work schedule, working both in-office and remotely. Under the new policy, staff will receive 90 days’ notice before their work schedule changes. The directive is set to go into full effect by July 2027, but agency heads were required to return to in-person work starting Oct. 19.

According to Kreisman, 25% of Local 88 members work fully remote with another 20% working a hybrid schedule.

Local 88 says the policy was crafted behind closed doors without any union input, which has shattered employees’ trust in leadership and bruised workplace morale. Kreisman said union members plan to fill the county board room Thursday morning to underscore their condemnation.

Vega Pederson and Neal have said the transition will improve staff collaboration and workplace culture.

The policy has become a campaign issue for candidates hoping to replace Vega Pederson in next week’s election. Chair candidate and Commissioner Shannon Singleton has demanded a pause on the new work plan to hear from union workers. Commissioner Julia Brim-Edwards has also expressed concern about advancing the policy without staff input. The third contender in the race, former Commissioner Sharon Meieran, has not spoken publicly about the policy.

Kreisman said that 97% of staff who attended a union meeting last week voted in favor of the “no confidence” decision against Vega Pederson and 96% voted to similarly condemn Neal. He doesn’t believe the union has ever cast such a vote against the county’s top elected official.

The union decision came during the same meeting where members cast another significant vote: A decision to rescind their previous endorsement of Brim-Edwards for chair, instead backing Singleton. The union hasn’t issued an explanation for the switch, but it came after civil rights group Basic Rights Oregon did a similar reversal, accusing Brim-Edwards of making anti-trans statements.

Brim-Edwards has rejected the allegations, calling them part of a false smear campaign against her.

News Source : https://www.opb.org/article/2026/10/29/multnomah-county-public-union-declares-no-confidence-in-top-officials/