Oakland City Employees Strike Will Grind On Into 3rd Day
OAKLAND (CBS SF) – Roughly 3,000 Oakland city workers plan to strike for a third straight day Thursday, a union spokeswoman said.
The strike that started Tuesday includes roughly 2,000 members of Service Employees International Union Local 1021 and roughly 1,000 members of International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers Local 21.
About 20 city employees who belong to Local 1245 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers are also respecting Local 1021's picket lines.
The Oakland City Council held a closed-session special meeting this afternoon to discuss labor negotiations.
However, SEIU Local 1021 spokeswoman Gabriella Miroglio said by email shortly after 4 p.m. that the strike will continue into Thursday "as city leaders fail to authorize contract negotiations."
The city employees are protesting what they say are low staffing levels, problems retaining employees, as well as community health and safety issues associated with illegal dumping, and a shortage of crews to deal with it.
They're also objecting to mandatory overtime for emergency dispatchers—a group represented by the unions involved—and reliance on part-time employees.
Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf earlier this week said she considers the strike as an unfair labor practice since negotiations are not yet at an impasse.
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