To promote harmonious and cooperative relationships between the County and its employees and to protect the public by assuring the orderly and uninterrupted operations of the County government, the County Council declares that it is the public policy of this County, subject to the limitations of the State Constitution and the applicable State laws, that classified employees be permitted to participate effectively in the determination of the terms and conditions of their employment. It is also the purpose of this title to strengthen existing relationships between the County and its employees and their representatives by imposing on each the obligation to enter into negotiations with affirmative willingness to reach agreement in matters of wages, hours, working conditions, and other terms of employment with due regard for, and subject to, the provisions of applicable laws and the Charter provisions governing public employment and fiscal procedures in the County.
(1985 Code, Art. 8, § 4-102)