During the 1977 Session of the General Assembly, Senator Elliot Schewel introduced three bills (Senate Bills 890, 892 and 893) relating to public employer-employee relations and the grievance procedure. These bills, considered by the Senate General Laws Committee, were of such magnitude that the Committee charged a subcommittee to explore in depth employer-employee relations with a view to strengthening such relations through improvements in the State and local grievance procedures. The subcommittee was charged with the task of identifying specific weaknesses in the procedure and making appropriate recommendations to remedy such weaknesses. The Senate General Laws Committee invited its counterpart in the House of Delegates to participate in the study.

Senator Adelard L. Brault, Chairman of the Senate General Laws Committee, appointed the following Senate Members to serve on the subcommittee: James T. Edmunds, Kenbridge; Clive L. DuVal, II, Arlington; Virgil H. Goode, Jr., Rocky Mount; Elliot S. Schewel, Lynchburg; and Wiley F. Mitchell, Jr., Alexandria. Delegate Thomas W. Moss, Chairman of the House General Laws Committee, Appointed the following House members to serve on the subcommittee: Alan A. Diamonstein, Newport News; Thomas J. Rothrock, Fairfax; James B. Murray, Charlottesville; Calvin W. Fowler, Danville; and Arthur R. Giesen, Jr., Staunton. The Joint Subcommittee elected Senator Elliot S. Schewel and Alan A. Diamonstein as chairman and vice-chairman, respectively. John Daniel, staff attorney, and Constance D. Sprouse, Legislative Research Associate of the Division of Legislative Services, served as staff for the Joint Subcommittee.

The organizational meeting of the Joint Subcommittee was held on May 2, 1977. At that time the mission of the Joint Subcommittee was agreed upon to encompass Senate Bills 890, 892, and 893 (state and local grievance Procedures), House Bill 1610 ("Policemen's bill of rights") and House Bill 1783 (teachers' dismissal bill).

Public hearings were held in Richmond, Annandale, Staunton, Newport News and Abingdon. These hearings were conducted in two segments to separate managerial and supervisory employees from non-supervisory employees in order to encourage non-supervisory personnel to address the Joint Subcommittee without fear of reprisal. Employees who did fear reprisal were offered the opportunity to address the Joint Subcommittee in executive session. Approximately forty managerial or supervisory employees and sixty non-supervisory employees addressed the Joint Subcommittee. In addition, several members of the Subcommittee met on an individual basis with many non-supervisory employees who felt their jobs might be threatened if they appeared in public session. The respective Committees received the Subcommittee's report and under their auspices, the Subcommittee's report is printed here for the General Assembly's review.