San Mateo County Superior Court employees are getting ready to strike Monday as labor union members accuse court leadership of unfair labor practices.
Service Employees International Union Local 521 represents San Mateo County Superior Court workers like court reporters, clerks, paralegals, accountants, and judicial assistants. SEIU Local 521 is accusing court management of failing to bargain in good faith during contract talks and assigning workers to tasks outside their classifications without training.
“Court leadership’s decisions to engage in unfair labor practices and its failure to bargain in good faith have forced our members to take this step,” said court reporter and union president Stacy Gaskill in a statement. “We have repeatedly sought solutions, but workers’ rights cannot continue to be ignored.”
The union is asking for an agreement that addresses workers’ concerns, improves staffing and retention, respects job classifications, and strengthens court services for the community.
Court leadership says it is committed to reaching a fair agreement, but that the financial strain the court is facing must be taken into consideration when negotiating.
The court is operating below the amount of funding needed. For fiscal year 2026-27, the court expects to receive $53.5 million in allocations from the state. However, the court estimates that it has an operational need of $67.3 million.
Court strives for ‘responsible balance’
The court says it has made increases to employee compensation and benefits in the last few years, including cost of living adjustments to wages, bonuses, and increased leave time and medical benefits coverage.
In 2025, deputy court clerks, fiscal office specialists, and exhibit technicians received a 3% equity adjustment, or salary equity increase. In 2022, court clerks got a 5% equity adjustment.
The court says its existing offer achieves a “responsible balance” between providing employee compensation and maintaining long-term financial stability.
“Our employees are the foundation of the court’s ability to serve the public,” said Court Executive Officer Jeniffer Alcantara in a statement. “We value their contributions and remain committed to negotiating in good faith toward an agreement that supports employees while preserving the court’s ability to provide essential services to the community.”
SEIU Local 521 also wants court management to address backlogs in court filings due to increased workloads along with a rise in court position vacancies. The union says that between 2022-23 and 2024-25, case clearance rates declined by about 12%.
“This fight is about much more than a labor dispute — it is about the future of our courts and whether working families will have access to a justice system that works for everyone,” Gaskill said. “Strong courts need strong workers, and court leadership must take responsibility for getting us there.”
The union says court leadership still has an opportunity to avoid the work stoppage by returning to meaningful negotiations and ending what the union says are unfair labor practices.
What a strike would mean
If both parties don’t reach an agreement and the strike proceeds Monday, all San Mateo County Superior Court locations will remain open. The court says it will implement contingency plans to maintain critical operations and essential services like processing emergency domestic violence restraining orders, conducting criminal arraignments, custody arraignments, and other proceedings with a statutory deadline.
Some non-emergency matters may be rescheduled. Members of the public should expect possible delays in certain services and case processing.
Document drop boxes will be available at the court’s Redwood City and South San Francisco locations, as well as the Juvenile Branch in San Mateo for juvenile filings.
Members of the public can check the court website for information regarding services on the day of the strike.
“The court remains focused on minimizing impacts to litigants, attorneys, jurors, and the broader community while continuing efforts to achieve a negotiated resolution with represented employees,” court officials said.
