Over 550 Berkeley city workers plan for potential two-day strike
More than 550 Berkeley municipal workers are scheduled to stage a two-day strike next week if efforts to reach a contract agreement with the city continue to fail.
Union leaders announced the strike for next Wednesday and Thursday to protest what they say are Berkeley's unfair labor practices.
"The city of Berkeley has chosen to prioritize huge raises for upper management while working people are struggling to keep up with rising costs," said SEIU 1021 bargaining team member Jamie Cooney, a hazardous materials inspector for the city.
"We are ready to strike if they don't return to the table with a meaningful offer," Cooney said.
In late October, 93 percent of the 550 members of SEIU Local 1021's Community Services Unit and Part-time Recreation Leaders Association voted to authorize a strike after nine months of bargaining failed to yield an agreement.
If the strike isn't averted, several vital city services could be impacted, including transportation planning, libraries, housing inspection, health, welfare and social services.
Berkeley Mayor Jesse Arreguín has scheduled a special closed session of the City Council for Friday at 4 p.m. to confer with the city's labor negotiators.
Neither Arreguín nor city spokesperson Matthai Chakko responded to requests for comment on the potential strike and whether the city has plans to mitigate service disruptions in the event it progresses as scheduled.
The union says that since 2012, its members' pay has fallen behind the Consumer Price Index, a key measure of inflation, by 26 percent and is now 39 percent behind the Bay Area's median income.
This has led to serious recruitment and staff retention problems, according to union leaders, who want to link pay hikes, retirement and dental benefit increases to inflation.
SEIU 1021 has filed unfair labor practices complaints with the state's Public Employee Relations Board over the city's alleged union-busting, denying union representation and refusing to bargain in good faith, according to a statement from union leaders.
Additionally, Berkeley Day Camp workers staged a two-day strike in August and, in October, union workers picketed outside City Hall.
"The problems facing Berkeley residents and Berkeley workers alike are urgent, but for months, the city has been refusing to bargain in good faith to address our issues," said librarian Julia Wiswell. "Now, for a better future and an end to the city's unfair labor practices, we have no choice but to go on strike."