No resolution is in sight for an unfolding conflict between Arlington County’s leadership and its firefighter union.
Last month, IAFF Local 2800 held its second vote of no confidence against Fire Chief David Povlitz, reiterating doubts in his job performance and calling for his removal.
The vote, which followed a previous no-confidence vote in November 2023, is tied to a dispute over slow progress in resolving longstanding concerns about culture and staffing at the Arlington County Fire Department.
The most recent attempt to oust the chief has proved as unsuccessful as the first, leaving the union and ACFD leadership locked in argument over deeply rooted issues.
County Manager Mark Schwartz continues to throw his support behind the chief that he appointed in 2018. In a letter to ACFD staff late last month, he highlighted recent attempts to address reports of harassment, boost staffing and reduce reliance on mandatory overtime.
Union leaders have acknowledged some recent improvements, including unofficial plans to add $3 million to ACFD’s budget in Fiscal Year 2026. However, the union now finds itself facing off against Schwartz as it continues to argue that the current fire chief hasn’t done enough to advance the department.
Aggrieved union members include some of the 32 female firefighters who, in a letter to Schwartz and the Arlington County Board last year, detailed a “pervasive toxic environment” that they said jeopardizes their safety and wellbeing.
Ellen Renaud, an attorney representing five current and former female firefighters at ACFD, told ARLnow that her clients are disappointed in the lack of change that they’ve seen. She described a workplace where sexual harassment allegations are “not taken seriously,” contributing to an environment so distressing it caused three of her clients to leave.
“They’re feeling like the department doesn’t care about their wellbeing,” she said.
Retired Deputy Fire Chief Mike Gowen, meanwhile, warned that many of the most pressing problems don’t have quick solutions.
Although “a handful of toxic followers” continue to present a major issue, he believes Povlitz’s current approach to responding to a range of employee perspectives will ultimately bear fruit. Gowen told ARLnow that in-progress efforts to change workplace culture and improve operations will be necessary to solve staffing issues and repair relations with the union.
“Do I think we’re going to be here in a year? I hope not,” said Gowen, who left ACFD in June 2023. “I think they’re putting things in play that hopefully will make things better. I hope they can get ahold of the culture, that they can beat that. That’s going to be a long time.”
Schwartz defends county actions
Schwartz defended his support for Povlitz in a lengthy letter outlining recent steps to improve the fire department.
He disputed union claims of a “willful neglect regarding harassment of women.” On the contrary, Schwartz noted that the county hired an outside law firm to investigate last year’s letter and presented findings to the department in August.
While ACFD properly addressed complaints filed prior to the letter, Schwartz said, investigators uncovered some misconduct that had not been reported, as well as further misconduct that took place after the date of the letter — findings that led to “disciplinary actions.”
“While I cannot provide specific details on these investigations because that relate to personnel matters, the complaints and concerns have been taken seriously,” the county manager wrote. “Any behavior that harms, belittles, or degrades anyone in our organization is unacceptable and contrary to our values as a County and an employer.”
He pointed out several new efforts to respond to women firefighters’ concerns and “improve culture and general civility among fire department personnel.” These include the following changes.
- Establishing the Office of Professional Standards
- Providing updated inclusion training
- Conducting mandatory annual Equal Employment Opportunity training
- Clarifying reporting processes
- Training officers on reporting and investigating
- Providing status updates to complaining parties
Schwartz additionally noted plans to allocate $3 million in extra funds “to address compression and recruitment issues that have been under discussion between County staff and the union.”
“The short, medium, and long-term answer to the challenges of staffing and mandatory holds is to increase staffing in the Department,” he said. “There is no shortcut to address this issue, but the additional significant investment for FY 2026, that will be effective July 1, 2025, and the aggressive efforts to initiate a large recruit class in January and July, if necessary, should assist with meeting the challenge.”
County spokesperson Ryan Hudson declined to provide additional information on the planned funding, “as discussions with the union are still underway.”
Schwartz added that ACFD currently experiences “minimal loss of staff to surrounding jurisdictions” and provides “staffing and unit availability that exceed many of our neighbors.”
“As County Manager, and as someone who has worked at various levels of government for more than 30 years, I can tell you that Dave Povlitz is among the very best at thinking strategically, advocating thoughtfully, and demonstrating his commitment to you, the people in the Fire Department,” he wrote.
Union targets ‘disappointing’ response
While Local 2800 leaders acknowledge some progress, they argue that county leadership is claiming too much credit for improvements which, they say, don’t go far enough.
In an email to members, the union’s executive board argued that many positive changes have been the result of pressure from the union, the media and the County Board.
“The resilience and dedication of ACFD’s membership should not be exploited as a buffer for leadership failures,” the board wrote. “Leadership must demonstrate true accountability by listening to and addressing the concerns of its workforce.”
Grievances include a failure to implement requested changes to reporting processes, and past delays in releasing heavily redacted information on the investigation that followed last year’s letter.
“While the County Manager’s statement acknowledges some of the concerns raised, it ultimately falls short of addressing the root causes of the department’s challenges — leadership deficiencies, a lack of transparency, and a failure to act proactively,” the board wrote.
The union further criticized leadership for failing to act sooner in cutting ties with a contractor alleged to have been involved in a sexual assault in 2021. Povlitz has said that he canceled the contract shortly after the August 2023 letter made him aware of those allegations.
Overall, union leaders called the county’s response to the no-confidence vote “disappointing” and targeted Schwartz for not taking further action.
“If the County Manager truly supports the Fire Chief, he must also take responsibility for his own role in these failures,” they said. “Leadership is about accountability, not deflections, delays, or political rhetoric.”
Alleged victims condemn slow progress
Some of Povlitz’s sharpest critics are victims of alleged harassment within the department.
Last year’s letter referred to decades of “disturbing incidents” involving “serious allegations of harassment, negligence, and misconduct, particularly affecting many of [ACFD’s] female personnel.”
It alleged persistent anonymous emails and text messages targeting women in ACFD; safety concerns including a lack of locks on sleeping quarters; a culture of retaliation; and an opaque investigation process. It accused leadership of inconsistent responses to formal complaints — including an alleged sexual assault during a physical examination carried out by a medical contractor.
“An existing culture of silence, avoidance of confrontation, and a framework that encourages members to keep the peace and not make waves, has significantly eroded trust in leadership,” the letter said. “This environment has taken a toll on the mental well-being of our members.”
Renaud said that changes over the past year haven’t gone far enough to restore a sense of safety in her clients who remain at the agency.
“I think ‘vulnerable’ is really the best word to describe how they feel — because they don’t feel that the department is going to protect them,” she said.
She called for more consistent discipline for violations, more training in sexual harassment prevention, and permanent funding for the newly established Office of Professional Standards.
“[Povlitz] could have changed things,” Renaud said. “He could have said, ‘What? You don’t have sexual harassment training annually? That’s standard.'”
ACFD spokesperson Capt. Nate Hiner said ACFD has “conducted training on preventing harassment, reporting processes, and fostering inclusivity.”
“The Fire Department will continue to develop and deliver training using the input and feedback from our personnel,” he said.
Renaud has filed charges on behalf of her clients at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. She said ACFD continues to have high attrition rates among female employees in particular — so far losing 17 of 37 women hired in one round of recruitment in October 2015.
The attorney, who represents firefighters in other municipalities as well, said she finds Local 2800’s support for her clients “refreshing.” But she had hoped for a more tangible response from the county following the most recent vote.
“[My clients] are disappointed,” Renaud said. “We thought that they would take the complaints more seriously.”
Systemic issues at ACFD
Gowen agrees that ACFD’s culture continues to drive away qualified employees and take a toll on many who choose to stay.
“Arlington County has hired a lot of diverse candidates to come into the department, [but] we’ve lost a lot of diverse candidates,” said the retired deputy fire chief, who used to run ACFD exit interviews. “We’ve done a pretty good job of getting people to the dance. We can’t keep them on the dance floor, and part of that is the way people treat one another.”
However, he argued that these problems predate Povlitz and are notoriously difficult to solve — especially in the public sector, where numerous worker protections make it harder to terminate employees. He believes this is part of the reason some firefighters are still at the department despite the issues they have caused.
“If you were in a private work environment, I would imagine they would go to the office of the boss, and their stuff would be packed up, and they would move on,” Gowen said. “But in a public work environment, as a public employee, it’s hard to do that. It’s hard to get rid of those people.”
Much of the problem, he said, is outside of Povlitz’s control and relates to employee protection policies at the county level. But that’s often cold comfort to people who have been victims of harm and want to see more consequences.
Gowen added that beyond driving employees to quit, low morale can affect their willingness to volunteer to work overtime. This leads to more reliance on mandatory holds — which causes morale to dip even more.
He alleged that all of these issues contribute to a high use of sick leave within the department, as the culture and the long hours make employees less willing or able to work.
“Some of it might be an abuse [of sick leave], but some of it might be finding out what’s going on with an employee,” Gowen said. “Do they need some kind of help, to get them … to where they can come back in?”
Hiner told ARLnow that “ACFD leadership has no indication of sick leave abuse.” He did not respond to a question on how many firefighters had called in sick the night that a Ballston fire engine temporarily went out of service due to low staffing.
Local 2800 declined to respond to Gowen’s assessment of issues in the department.
“The retired deputy chief has not been with the department for some time and is no longer involved in our operations or communications within the County,” union Vice President Dustin Drumm said. “We feel it would be inappropriate and unprofessional for us to respond to him.”
Next steps for the department
Opinions on Povlitz remain divided as people with ties to ACFD look toward the future.
The daughters of three captains in the department and two Halls Hill residents penned a letter of support for the fire chief this weekend.
“We are writing to express our enthusiastic support for Chief Povlitz and his unwavering commitment to fostering diversity, inclusivity, and equitable representation with the Arlington County Fire Department,” the letter says. “His leadership exemplifies the principles necessary to create a workplace that truly reflects the diverse community it serves.”
The writers — Kitty Clark Stevenson, Rochelle Jones Day, Marguarite Reed Gooden, Peggy Carter Jones and Edith Gravely — argued that his efforts contrast with a decades-long “legacy of non-compliance and missed opportunities for meaningful change.”
“Chief Povlitz understands that diversity within emergency services is not just a moral imperative but also a
practical one,” they said. “A diverse workforce enhances operational effectiveness, builds trust, and strengthens collaboration with the community. His initiatives — including equitable hiring practices, mentorship programs, and fostering a supportive work environment — are critical steps toward achieving these goals.”
Renaud, by contrast, underscored that firefighters continue to suffer and many solutions have yet to materialize. She called recent efforts “too little, too late.”
“The fire chief can fix these things more easily than anyone else can,” she said.
Gowen, meanwhile, continues to have faith in the chief. He believes further progress at the department will depend not only on administrative changes, but on finding common ground with employees across the department.
“He is an emotionally intelligent leader,” Gowen said. “He is a smart person and a decent person, so he’s willing to take that feedback that we’re getting in order to change things.”
Drumm noted that the majority of Local 2800’s members appear to disagree.
“We are committed to representing our members and ensuring their voices are heard,” he said. “We look forward to working with County leadership to find a positive resolution that addresses the concerns raised by our members.”
