Boeing has tens of thousands still on strike. East Coast Dock workers went on strike and received a 62% (not a typo) wage increase. The Kaiser mental health workers, about 34,000, will shortly go on strike.
Now we have the San Fran Court clerks about to go on strike. In all of this I do not blame the unions. Bidenomics caused inflation is the reason for this. The Biden/Harris inflation has made workers poorer, so they need to strike for higher wages. As they do, inflation rises. End the Biden/Harris economic death spiral on November 5.
“A nearly unanimous vote by San Francisco Superior Court clerks authorized the union contract negotiators to call a strike unless management returns to the table and addresses their concerns about staffing and training.
The clerks’ contract expired on Sept. 30, and the workers said management has “essentially refused to negotiate,” requesting the concerns be instead handled through mediation, leading to 99% of the clerks authorizing a strike.”
San Francisco Superior Court clerks authorize strike
The clerks say short staffing, deficient technology and poor training have led to a backlog of cases.
Monique Merrill, courthousenews, 10/10/24 https://www.courthousenews.com/san-francisco-superior-court-clerks-authorize-strike/
(CN) — A nearly unanimous vote by San Francisco Superior Court clerks authorized the union contract negotiators to call a strike unless management returns to the table and addresses their concerns about staffing and training.
The clerks’ contract expired on Sept. 30, and the workers said management has “essentially refused to negotiate,” requesting the concerns be instead handled through mediation, leading to 99% of the clerks authorizing a strike.
“By seeking to maintain the status quo, management seems to be denying there’s a problem,” Benjamin Thompson, courtroom clerk and vice president of the Service Employees International Union 1021 SF Superior Courts chapter, said in a statement. “Those of us working in the courts every day know there’s a problem.”
The court clerks cite short staffing, faulty technology, inadequate training and mismanagement as the factors that have led to a backlog of cases and substantial delays.
“The Sixth Amendment guarantees defendants the right to a speedy trial. Right now, that’s not happening — meaning the San Francisco Superior Court is denying people their constitutional rights,” Thompson said.
The union said over 70 criminal cases had to be dismissed in August due to the delays. Under California’s penal code, misdemeanor cases must be brought to trial within 45 days after being charged if the person is not in custody and 30 days if the person is in custody.
“Trying to get through the backlog without enough time or staffing leads to simple errors that cause real-world problems,” Robert Borders, criminal division courtroom clerk, said in a statement. “A small mistake on paper can turn into a living nightmare for someone stuck in a jail cell waiting for their day in court.”
San Francisco’s average annual jail count has risen by 26% from 2023, according to data from the San Francisco Sheriff’s Office. The continued delays at the court are exacerbating an already overcrowded and understaffed jail, the union said.
“When people are stuck in jail waiting for their day in court longer than they should be, it just makes the overcrowding problem worse. It also means the jail medical staff, who are already stretched thin, can’t meet the population’s needs,” Joe Duncan, a nurse working for the Department of Public Health in the city jails, said in a statement
The San Francisco Superior Court did not provide a comment before press time.
The strike authorization from Wednesday comes on the heels of a series of rallies the union held in August and September to bring attention to the problems created by a high level of cases and low level of staff.
In July, the Judicial Council of California approved a funding allocation that included a $97 million general reduction to the operation funding of local trial courts, like San Francisco Superior Court.
The strike authorization vote comes the same week that jury selection began in the trial against Nima Momeni, the man accused of killing Cash App founder Bob Lee, which is being held at the San Francisco Superior Court.
Just get it done and over with. Double everyone’s wages so they will feel good.