Washington County is calling for voluntary furloughs as they deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. Commissioners and SEIU Local 668, which represents workers in Washington County’s courts, as well as its Human Services and County Services departments, released a joint statement Tuesday. While the exact number of workers to be affected is unknown at this time, it is estimated that this action could impact approximately 50 workers. Chairman Diana Irey-Vaughn says “there is no real concensus on when this pandemic will end and how long we’ll have to provide reduced county services so in an effort to retain the county’s strong fiscal position we worked collaboratively with the SEIU on voluntary furloughs so that when we do emerge from this crisis, the County will be able to effectively help small businesses and residents get back to work.” SEIU Local 668 President Steve Cantanese says “while this action is unfortunate, we understand that it’s a good faith effort to protect worker safety and jobs, while ensuring the County can continue to serve the public through the duration of this crisis. We’ll continue to work with the Commission to ensure that this action causes the least possible harm to the County’s employees”.