Wages
SEIU Local 1000, the largest union of California state employees, called its members out on a one-day strike on Wednesday, Oct. 21, the first strike in the union’s history. The walkout follows months of stalled contract talks with Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration over pay, health care costs and the state’s four-day return-to-office rule.
The union says it represents more than 100,000 state workers, and that more than 95,000 of them are eligible to join the strike line. That is a ceiling, not a head count: the union says a small number of employees are designated essential because their absence would create an imminent and substantial threat to public health or safety, and no figure for how many workers actually walked off the job had been published. The workforce ranges from auditors, nurses and counselors to office staff, custodians and employees at the DMV, Caltrans and CalFire.
What the union wants
The union’s contract expired June 30, 2026. According to the Associated Press, Local 1000 is seeking a 20% pay increase over three years and a larger state contribution toward employees’ health care costs. It also wants more flexibility to work from home, arguing that remote work saves the state money on office space and improves work-life balance.
Telework is the central sticking point. Newsom ordered state workers back to the office four days a week by July 1, saying in-person work improves collaboration and innovation. KQED reported that the order took effect in July after a one-year delay. The union sponsored AB 1729, which would have required agencies to justify in-office requirements, and the Legislature passed it, but Newsom vetoed it in September. KQED reported that a state auditor found broader telework could save up to $225 million.
Members authorized the strike earlier this month. The union’s strike page puts the yes vote at 96.2%; CalMatters reported that 96% of those voting were in favor. Neither source gives turnout.
How talks broke down
The union filed unfair labor practice charges in July. CalMatters reported that in late September the Public Employment Relations Board sided with the union, concluding that the California Department of Human Resources, which bargains for the governor, “refused to meet and confer in good faith.” An impasse was declared in early October, and mediation began Thursday, Oct. 15, according to the Sacramento Bee.
No deal came before the walkout. “There are no negotiations scheduled before tomorrow’s strike,” union President Anica Walls told the Bee on Tuesday, Oct. 20. The Bee reported that CalHR said talks stalled because the union would return to the table only for a good telework proposal, while the union said it was waiting for an offer that also covered raises and higher health care contributions.
In a statement Walls released for the strike, she said: “We are going on strike because we know the Newsom administration can and must do better.” CalHR said it is coordinating with the union and state departments, which have contingency plans if operations are disrupted, and that it “continues to be available at the bargaining table.”
What it means for workers and services
Strikers will not be paid for the hours they miss. The union’s own guidance says the state intends to dock pay, sets a payroll cutoff of Oct. 22, and notes that its strike fund is not meant to replace wages. The union says striking does not interrupt benefits coverage or affect pensions.
Picket lines were scheduled at five state worksites in Sacramento from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m., followed by a rally outside CalHR’s headquarters at 1810 16th St. and a march to the Capitol Annex Swing Space. Lines were also planned at state buildings in Oakland, San Francisco, Fresno, Los Angeles, Norwalk, San Bernardino and San Diego, plus smaller sites across the state. Walls told CalMatters earlier this month that a strike could delay services at the DMV and the state’s unemployment and disability insurance offices.
The strike is limited to one day. Walls told the Bee the union would not sit down with the state again until after the walkout, and no new bargaining date had been announced, leaving the dispute over the expired contract open.
Sources
- SEIU Local 1000, “Unfair Practice Strike” information page, accessed October 21, 2026. https://www.seiu1000.org/strike/
- Associated Press via ABC News, Sophie Austin, California state workers one-day strike report, October 21, 2026. https://abcnews.com/US/wireStory/california-state-workers-launching-1-day-strike-return-137436177
- Sacramento Bee via Yahoo News, “‘Our strike is moving forward.’ SEIU Local 1000 doesn’t make last-minute deal,” October 20, 2026. https://www.yahoo.com/news/politics/articles/strike-moving-forward-seiu-local-223849376.html
- CalMatters, “California’s biggest state worker union authorizes strike in Newsom’s last months,” October 8, 2026. https://calmatters.org/economy/2026/10/seiu-local-1000-strike-authorization/
- KQED, “California’s Largest State-Workers Union Set to Strike Later This Month,” October 8, 2026. https://www.kqed.org/news/12103583/californias-largest-public-sector-union-set-to-strike-later-this-month
Featured photo: The California State Capitol in Sacramento, photographed April 2, 2026. Representative image; not the Oct. 21 strike or picket lines. Photo: Quintin Soloviev, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 4.0). Cropped from the original.
