Hundreds of court clerks, legal assistants and other staffers returned to their Alameda County courthouses Friday, allowing courtrooms to begin operating as normal after a two-day strike that hobbled the East Bay’s justice system.
The leaders of SEIU Local 1021 said they planned to go back to the bargaining table Monday, while suggesting that future strikes were possible if negotiations did not go as they hoped. A return to the picket lines next week “all depends on what happens in bargaining on Monday,” said Chris Flink, a spokesperson for the union.
The detente Friday helped restore a sense of normalcy to courthouses across Alameda County, which had been slowed to a crawl the two previous days while court clerks, legal assistants and records custodians marched outside while chanting “No wages, no justice, no contract – no peace,” and holding signs reading “Fair contract now!!!”
During the strike, most courtrooms were dark and records departments were largely closed to the public due to the lack of staff. The few open courtrooms were left to handle only the most pressing cases, particularly for defendants who were legally owed key evidentiary hearings for their cases by state-mandated deadlines.
At the Rene C. Davidson Courthouse on Thursday, the typically-busy Department 11 courtroom was slowed by a courtroom staff that was “pieced together” with only one clerk, as opposed to the normal two or three that typically help run it, said Judge Kimberly E. Colwell, in remarks on the bench.
“Everyone knows we are in a very difficult moment,” said Colwell, while addressing concerns aired by an attorney about evidence and scheduling issues in a case.
One public defender in the courtroom was seen wearing a SEIU Local 1021 pin, while another wore a scarf emblazoned with the public defenders’ own union logo, in solidarity with the striking staffers.
The current contract proposal – which includes an immediate 1% raise and stipend after a new contract is approved – has not found support among union negotiators. More than 98% of union members voted to authorize a strike to force the court’s hand. Union representatives declined to state their desired wage increase, instead focusing on alleged unfair labor practices.
Court officials, meanwhile, have strongly pushed back against SEIU’s claims of short-staffing, inadequate cost-of-living adjustments and a failure to fully and properly train employees. Meeting the unions’ salary demands “would require the Court to lay off a significant number of staff members,” according to a press release by the superior court Wednesday. It also claimed the Superior Court of Alameda County is overstaffed by more than 100 employees, based on current caseload.
During the two-day strike, court leaders instituted an “emergency operations plan” to utilize managers and non-union employees to keep critical cases on schedule.
Returning to the picket lines after Monday’s bargaining session was “entirely possible,” Anthony Mirande, a member of the union’s bargaining team, said on Thursday. He added that “we feel satisfied we’re getting our message across.”
“They need to realize the public comes first — they shouldn’t be getting tired, overworked employees,” said Mirande, adding that the return to work Friday “doesn’t mean that we’re done.”
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