San Francisco Superior Court proceedings might be impacted later this week as court clerks prepare to go on an indefinite strike starting Thursday.
Service Employees International Union Local 1021, the union representing the court clerks, said in a news release Monday that the court clerks will go on an unfair labor practice strike starting Thursday if court management does not agree to address what the union says are longstanding staffing and training issues before then.
In their proposal, the union is asking for proper training for clerks, reference books to help with their job, and a reduced workload.
In response, a San Francisco Superior Court statement issued Tuesday said that it will remain open for mandated and emergency services at the Civic Center Courthouse, the Hall of Justice, and the Juvenile Justice Center if the strike takes place. Cases with statutory deadlines will be prioritized, and clerks’ offices will also likely be closed to the public.
“Mandated services will proceed with the help of management employees who will triage and prioritize emergency matters for people who need help today,” said Court Executive Officer Brandon Riley in the statement. “It is unfortunate that SEIU has decided to disrupt court services after more than 28 bargaining sessions and two mediation sessions to reach a fair 3-year contract that reflects the economic realities of state funding for the judicial branch.”
If the clerks go ahead with the strike this week, it will not be the first time.
In October 2024, around 200 clerks working in criminal, civil, and juvenile justice divisions went on strike over the same concerns. They pointed out that 70 misdemeanor cases had to be dismissed because they took too long to go to trial, an indication of the backlog created by short staffing.
Monday’s news release from the union said that a contract was agreed upon after that strike, but court management did not adequately address the issues.
A year later, in October 2025, the union again authorized a strike but called it off after a tentative agreement was reached in time.
But in November, the union members did not ratify the agreement, putting them at an impasse with the court that has not been resolved yet, according to the court statement issued Tuesday.
Now, the clerks have declared their intent to go on an indefinite strike again, calling it a “last resort.”
“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 Robert Borders, a Hall of Justice clerk in the union’s news release.
“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,” Borders said.