On Monday morning, the Union made it clear to the City that the strike will begin on Tuesday, at 06:00 AM, for an initial three-day period ending on Friday, August 18th, at 5:59 AM. For shift workers, no one will leave work or report to work mid-shift (more details to come for people working swing and night shifts).

Everyone must plan to attend one of the daily picket locations each day. There are a few different options for each day. Day one is a more extended day. The remaining two days will be shorter in length.

For months, we have been calling for a fair contract that restores the City of San Jose as a competitive employer of choice and addresses the urgent staffing crisis eroding the delivery of high-quality public services to our community. Despite our efforts, the Mayor and some city council members have been reluctant to tackle the issue of understaffing, leaving us with no choice but to take a stand for each other and our community…

During the last few weeks in San Jose, Mayor Matt Mahan, and City Manager Jennifer Maguire, along with the usual cadre of publicists and office staff, made several hastily arranged visits to various City departments throughout the city with a singular purpose: hand-deliver cookies and treats to the frontline staff as a token of appreciation.  Within hours, photos of these whirlwind photo-ops make their way to social media, and the general public is treated to the sight of city workers smiling enthusiastically, cookies in hand, straight out of the strike-busting playbook used by so many would-be union busters before them to remind workers that “we’re all a family here.”

On Wednesday, July 12th, the Union engaged in mediation with a state mediator and representatives from the city, hoping to reach a settlement. The City Council took their summer break without giving the City’s bargaining team any additional authority to up their offer, which made it impossible to make for us to make any meaningful progress during mediation. As a result, we have reached a critical juncture where we must consider alternative measures to ensure our needs are heard and met.

The Municipal Employees' Federation MEF-AFSCME) is pleased to inform you that a mediation date has been set for July 12th, providing us with another opportunity to reach an agreement for a new contract that addresses our concerns and secures a better future for all of us.

Download a copy of the first Strike FAQ for your worksite