San Francisco Court Clerks End Strike After Reaching Agreement
San Francisco Superior Court clerks have ended their strike and will return to work Monday after their union reached a tentative agreement with the city. The strike had caused significant disruptions to court proceedings, though details of the new deal were not released.
The two-day strike involved approximately 220 court clerks represented by SEIU Local 1021, who cited longstanding issues with understaffing, insufficient training, and pay as the primary reasons for the walkout. The union argued that these problems have led to significant backlogs, delays, and errors in the court system, affecting the public and the administration of justice. This recent strike is not an isolated incident. The clerks also held a one-day strike in October 2024 over similar demands. A tentative agreement reached in October 2025 was later voted down by 62% of the union members, indicating deep-seated dissatisfaction with the proposed solutions. During the two-day work stoppage, court operations were significantly impacted. Trials were postponed, hearings were canceled, and juries were dismissed until the following Monday. While the court remained open for mandated and emergency services, many courtrooms were shut down, leading to what some attorneys described as "chaos" at the Hall of Justice. The new tentative agreement includes "important concessions" from court management on cost-of-living adjustments and time off. Additionally, the court has reportedly made a more serious commitment to addressing the critical staffing and training issues through a detailed, unit-by-unit approach. The agreement still requires ratification by a majority vote of the union members to be officially adopted.
