We are extremely proud of the Staff Up San Jose union coalition campaign that we ran this year, in which our IFPTE Local 21 members organized powerfully towards a credible strike threat. After announcing a 99% ‘Yes’ strike authorization vote, City of San Jose Local 21 members reached a historic tentative agreement.
The new contracts include a general wage increase of 14.5-15% over three years for all of our members, and an increase from 1 to 8 weeks of paid family leave. The new contracts were ratified with a resounding 91% ‘Yes’ vote.
“As a member of the Bargaining Team and Chapter President of the City of San Jose Association of Maintenance Supervisory Personnel (AMSP), I am extremely proud of the Staff Up San Jose campaign that we ran, along with our unprecedented organizing towards a credible strike threat. Together, we have won contracts that we can be proud of and build upon for the future. The work continues from here, and we feel more united than ever."
On September 12, 2023, our two unions representing roughly 4,500 San Jose city employees were pleased to see that the San Jose City Council voted to approve our historic contracts by a 9-1 vote, with 9 votes in favor and the lone no vote from Mayor Matt Mahan. This event comes after half a year of contract negotiations and an averted city-wide strike.
The San Jose City Council voted to improve services by giving us the tools city workers need to recruit for hundreds of positions and retain committed staff. These wage increases mean that we can start to fill:
- Over 110 vacant positions in Parks, Recreation & Neighborhood Services
- Over 100 vacant positions in Public Works
- Over 160 vacant positions in the police department
- And almost 500 other vacancies across the City of San Jose.
"The proposed plan from city council will not impact current service levels for residents in any way. Instead of making unnecessary cuts to popular programs, Council Members Jimenez, Foley, and Cohen looked into their own budgets and found excess savings to help support the recruitment and retention of city staff."
This win represents a major victory in our fight for fully funded public services. Winning strong contracts with competitive wages and better working conditions puts our membership and San Jose residents on a path to the fully staffed services we deserve.
Contrary to any political grandstanding, this contract will be transformative for city services. This is a huge step in the right direction– one that we can be proud of and build upon for the future. Ultimately, we won this contract through our collective efforts by speaking up, showing up, and advocating. We look forward to continuing this work together.
