Monday, February 23, San Francisco Superior Court clerks gave court CEO Brandon Riley notice of their intent to strike starting Thursday, February 26. 

The strike notice came just a couple of days after SEIU 1021 members picketed outside the civil court at 400 McAllister, the criminal court at 850 Bryant, and the Juvenile Justice Center during their lunch break last Thursday to alert the public to an imminent strike.

“Our current working conditions are unsustainable—and create huge problems for San Francisco residents who have to interact with the court, whether as defendants, plaintiffs, witnesses, or jurors,” said Hall of Justice clerk and SEIU 1021 bargaining team member Rob Borders.

“What it will take to prevent a strike is simply for management to agree to commonsense solutions that will allow us to do our jobs so that the people we serve can actually get justice and have their issues resolved. A strike is a last resort. We are really hoping CEO Brandon Riley and presiding judge Rochelle East will show leadership and do the right thing to get San Francisco’s courts back on track.”

The strike can still be avoided if court management chooses to address the major staffing and training issues that have been causing backlogs, delays, and mistakes that have detrimental impacts on people’s lives.

These are the same issues that led to the strike in October 2024. Despite management’s agreement in the contract settled after that strike to implement new measures to resolve these longstanding problems—which had led to a number of cases being dropped after missing their constitutionally-mandated deadlines—they have failed to adequately address these issues. As a result, the lives of defendants, victims, and even  jurors are still being negatively impacted. The clerks’ union has filed unfair labor practice charges with the Public Employment Relations Board against court management due to their refusal to negotiate in good faith.

The clerks’ contract negotiations team has presented management with a revised package to address these issues with commonsense proposals, including to ensure that clerks are properly trained and have the reference materials needed before being placed in new departments, and that they are allowed to complete or delegate tasks not finished the prior day before being required to start new ones. As hourly employees who are not given the opportunity for overtime, many currently work unpaid through their lunch breaks and after hours trying to complete the day’s workload to avoid backlogs. 

Read more about the upcoming strike in the San Francisco Chronicle here.