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Tammy Rodriguez, center, who works for the DMV, at a rally organized by SEIU Local 1000 at the state Capitol on Wednesday, July 1, 2026.<\/p>\n
REN\u00c9E C. BYER<\/p>\n
rbyer@sacbee.com<\/p>\n
Next week\u2019s strike<\/a> appears to be moving ahead. The Public Employment Relations Board on Friday sided with SEIU Local 1000 by expressing its intent to deny the state\u2019s request to block the strike<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are ready to hold the line on Oct. 21,\u201d said SEIU Local 1000 President Anica Walls.<\/p>\n Wednesday\u2019s strike was prompted by what the union considers unfair bargaining practices, such as last-minute rejections of proposals<\/a> that would affect the state\u2019s budget. The union hasn\u2019t had a contract since the end of June and negotiations have been stalled since late July.<\/p>\n The California Department of Human Resources wanted to halt to strike because it believes the union hasn\u2019t fully participated in impasse requirements by calling the strike before undergoing mediations, which started Thursday. In response, the union said it is fulfilling impasse requirements<\/a>.<\/p>\n Ahead of PERB\u2019s decision, CalHR had conditionally asked to increase the number of essential workers, if the agency didn\u2019t block the strike, to about 5,350. That\u2019s the number of workers it believes ensures public health and safety<\/a>. This includes medical staff at state prisons, technology specialists at California Highway Patrol and custodians at state hospitals.<\/p>\n SEIU Local 1000 proposed nearly 3,250 essential workers. PERB, which referees public labor disputes, granted CalHR\u2019s essential worker request in part. It accepted the union\u2019s proposal and added nearly 1,160 additional workers, which brings the total number of staffers prohibited from striking to about 4,400.<\/p>\n That\u2019s down from about 6,000 workers who were deemed too important<\/a> to participate in the union\u2019s last strike threat in 2016. Many of those were medical staff, cooks and custodians. A last-minute deal was made with that threat to avoid a walkout.<\/p>\n Of the nearly 1,160 workers PERB added, about 1,080 of them are in Correctional Health Care Services. This includes certified nursing assistants and nurses who serve about 88,800 prison inmates.<\/p>\n The decision comes after SEIU Local 1000 officials examined staffing numbers during holidays, which were lower than what CalHR said was necessary to maintain public safety during the one-day strike.<\/p>\n \u201cThe board finds that the state has been unable to provide accurate information regarding the number of available replacement workers,\u201d said PERB\u2019s interim General Counsel Joseph Eckhart in a memo to the two parties obtained by The Sacramento Bee.<\/p>\n In the letter, PERB said it will not block the strike if the union agrees to the additional essential workers. SEIU Local 1000 told The Bee it agrees with those conditions.<\/p>\n \u201cWe will respect PERB\u2019s decision and make sure our members who are designated as essential know they need to report to work,\u201d Walls said.<\/p>\n The essential worker limit is generally negotiated between the employer and the union. SEIU Local 1000 and CalHR started negotiations on Sept. 16 to establish the number. They met again on Oct. 1 and Oct. 2, but CalHR canceled meetings for the following week. Union officials, in a PERB filing, said they were told the meetings were canceled because the state needed to \u201creassess its staffing needs.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI offered to meet throughout the weekend of Oct. 10 and 11, around the clock,\u201d said SEIU Local 1000 Contract Department Director Brooke Pierman in a statement to PERB. \u201cI also said we would be open to asking for PERB to assign a mediator to help mediate (essential worker) negotiations, potentially conducting multiple tables at once, with the goal of accomplishing a comprehensive line pass agreement sooner.\u201d<\/p>\n Walls said the union always aimed to continue California\u2019s essential services.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have said from the beginning that we can protect public health and safety while protecting our members\u2019 right to strike,\u201d Walls said.<\/p>\n CalHR declined to comment on PERB\u2019s letter, but said it \u201cremains committed through this process to ensure the continuity of state operations and critical services.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe department continues working with SEIU Local 1000 toward a fair and responsible agreement for state employees,\u201d said CalHR spokesperson Angela Musallam in a statement.<\/p>\n This story was originally published October 16, 2026 at 1:20 PM.<\/p>\n Related Stories from Sacramento Bee<\/p>\n
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