SF City Hall Clerks Go On Strike

Frustrations of overworked and undertrained clerks at San Francisco City Hall reached a boiling point last week. Officials had approximately a month to honor requests for updated training and more courtroom space. Two weeks ago, the unionized workers authorized a strike. Clerks held a protest outside City Hall on Thursday, temporarily halting all proceedings.

City Hall clerks not a fan of DA Brooke Jenkins

The strike’s occurrence so close to a battleground Election Day only heightened its visibility. Controversial District Attorney Brooke Jenkins, who did not win endorsement from the clerks’ union, allegedly voiced support for their cause. Her words may fall on hard ears. Challenger Ryan Khojasteh, a former member of Chesa Boudin’s cabinet who was fired after Jenkins took over, also voiced support. Khojasteh criticized the “severe mismanagement” at City Hall, promising to “Implement Evidence-Based Drug Policy, Not Fear Tactics.”

Khojasteh recently announced via Instagram his gratitude at receiving endorsement from the SEIU, the union representing the clerks on strike. 

An internal breakdown

Last month, when contracts expired between clerks and their employers, the chance to prevent this walkout was at its greatest. That management failed to renew those contracts implies how little they value their clerks’ essential work. Trials large and small have a right to expedience. All proceedings depend on an array of clerks and associates to meet that constitutional criteria, yet their superiors stand in their way. 

Compounding the issue, strikers say the workload is too much for how few employees there are. “We don’t have enough clerks to staff the courtrooms,” said Benjamin Thompson, vice president of the SEIU 1021 SF Superior Court chapter, to the SF Standard Wednesday. “Clerks from other divisions are being thrown in to cover absences and vacancies without proper training.”

And so, dozens of civic workers clad in purple walked out on Thursday afternoon to demand the recognition they deserve. Benjamin Thompson explained that “clerks are often shuffled between courtrooms into departments that require unique specialization, which can translate into clerical errors with real consequences for people interacting with the criminal justice system.” (KQED) 

“There’s a parole court, there’s motions to revoke probation, there’s domestic violence, there’s drug court … there’s all kinds of courts,” said Hall of Justice deputy court clerk Rodrigo Lopez, “and we’re not properly cross-trained to be able to just walk into a court and do our job.” (San Francisco Chronicle)

The real-life consequences of stingy management

The most high-profile case put on hold right now is the active trial of Nima Momeni. Momeni has been accused of murdering Cash App founder Bob Lee in San Francisco last year. Other cases include those of domestic violence, a crime subject to a statute of limitations. Another dispute on hold: pro-Palestinian protesters charged with false imprisonment for halting traffic on the Golden Gate Bridge.

The walkout comes as a result of stagnant communication between employer and employee. It’s not as if the strikers aren’t aware of the cost.

“The strike … could halt trials and delay hearings on everything from felonies to traffic violations to proceedings for divorces and child custody cases,” said representative Service Employees International Union Local 1021 in a statement. “But after months of bargaining in good faith while court management refuses to seriously address the root causes of the backlog, workers see a strike as a necessity to call the public’s attention to the court’s mismanagement and violations of both labor law and the U.S. Constitution.”

The backlog of clerical work reportedly dates to the early days of the pandemic. “We’ve been understaffed for a very long time, so we’re spread very thin,” said Hall of Justice courtroom clerk Rob Borders (Mission Local). Mr. Borders has worked as a courtroom clerk at the Hall of Justice for ten years. 

The easiest, least educated thing would be blaming the clerks themselves for the shortcomings of the managers they work for. When postponements and their consequences get presented to you as the fault of the clerks on strike, remember this. Had City Hall done the right thing to begin with, the clerks wouldn’t be on strike.

Don’t let that punching-down tactic win you over. The quiet crisis at City Hall has found its voice.