A few union stewards came by our office today and spoke to each individual rank and file employee in their cubicles handing out flyers on striking and answering questions. Lots of coworkers said they were down to strike. Managers obviously heard their presence and knows we ain't fucking around this time.
There's a guy in my office who walks for exercise in the office. He puts on walking shoes and walks around our cubes for an hour plus while on calls. I find it super distracting.
Do you think I'm an asshole if I tell him to cut it out?
I just wanna make sure I'm not being overly sensitive before saying something.
Had someone actually come into my space today telling me to stop taking my depression/anxiety medication and be thankful for what I have. Quickly followed up by someone walking in and telling me I’m looking depressed. Oh and the “When are you having a baby?” conversation is getting old. Maybe when I’m not barren from stress? Currently rocking two periods from the stress and am so visibly tired my friends are getting annoyed with me for being spacey and unresponsive. I have told my coworkers that I don’t want to talk and they steamroll me. Can’t wait to deal with this four days a week in September.
This is the second time this month the HVAC had gone out and they aren't sending us home.
As people have transitioned to a 4-day RTO mandate, I am struggling to understand where HR operations and management support went.
I’m seeing multiple posts about employees who have submitted valid documentation for work-from-home accommodations, yet they are facing immense resistance. On top of that, many of the offices employees are returning to have been left unmanaged, suffering from building maintenance issues. In an employee lounge, a broken refrigerator desperately needs replacing, yet staff members are being asked to chip in out of pocket to buy a new one.
Asking staff to pay for basic workplace amenities while wages remain stagnant is highly frustrating. Between high gas prices, increasing parking fees, and navigating public transportation budget cuts, the cost of commuting has skyrocketed.
The current approach to managing this transition is severely damaging employee morale, and it feels like the departments responsible for supporting the employees are completely missing in action.
Image matters, but image starts to fail as soon as a strike is confirmed. Leaving a mess here as he ends his final term? Reporters would love to see it happen. It will make a great national headline.
So, striking might sound a bit scary and unimaginable. Most of us do not have experience.
And so does Newsom.
But luckily for us, job protection is there, and we simply need to engage. How? By halting work entirely, no matter where you are.
When tens of thousands of us all stop working at the same time, this will immediately cause a statewide impact.
Ultimately, our leverage comes entirely from numbers: the more people who withhold their labor, the faster the state will be forced to the table to get a deal done.
You sacrifice a few days.
For something that’s worth it in the long run.
Reasonable wages.
Time with family.
——
Strike FAQs:
• Can I be fired for striking?
No. A union-authorized strike is a protected activity, making retaliation or termination illegal under the Dills Act.
Note: State workers on probation possess the exact same legal rights to strike as permanent employees.
• I work in an SEIU-represented unit but I am not a dues-paying union member. Can I still strike legally and be protected?
Yes. Non-members have the exact same right to strike and the exact same legal protections as union members.
• As a dues-paying member, what are my specific rights and roles in pushing for a strike?
You hold the exclusive democratic power to authorize the strike and vote on the final contract.
While the eventual strike protects all workers in the bargaining unit, only dues-paying members control the process.
• Can other unions legally join SEIU’s picket line if their contract has a "No-Strike" clause?
Yes, through a legally protected action called a “sympathy strike.”
Standard "No-Strike" clause only stops you from striking over your own contract. PERB rules that a “sympathy strike” is completely legal unless your contract explicitly says “sympathy strike is banned.” Note: unions including PECG and CAPS only have general no-strike language in their contracts, so they retain the legal right to honor SEIU's picket lines.
• Do I have to attend the physical picket line?
No. Striking legally means withholding your labor, but physically joining the picket line is strongly recommended. Showing up to the physical picket line creates a powerful visual for the media, and puts direct pressure on state leadership.
——
Now, about the timeline:
SEIU 1000 currently holds two active unfair labor practice (ULP) charges against CalHR: 4-day RTO mandate (filed 5/12) and bad-faith bargaining (filed 7/22).
For the RTO case, PERB found merit and issued a formal complaint; its mediation phase should be already complete. The bad-faith bargaining case is currently under review and if PERB issues a complaint, mediation should occur by September.
Because valid ULP charges allow workers to legally bypass standard, economic impasse timelines, if CalHR continues to remain stubborn at the table, we are now realistically just waiting on SEIU to officially execute a strike authorization vote.
A simple majority vote approves strike authorization.
(FYI - The 2016 strike authorization vote resulted in an overwhelming 92% "yes" vote from members.)
Once we’ve gone through this process, the actual strike can take place as early as October. November or December is a good time as we put pressure on both Newsom and the new governor-elect.
Stay informed, and be prepared.
Unions, if you’re reading this please send the strike vote now!! I think people are pissed enough now that they’ll vote in favor of it. I don’t understand why we are waiting until the bill is complete. The longer we wait, the more this RTO is normalized. We need to make sure we’re hitting Newsom before he leaves office!
You would think with RTO and being around people you wouldn’t feel so isolated. I’m really struggling with people being around me but feeling so alone.
Our office is extremely depressing. It’s so quiet you could hear a pin drop. No one interacts with each other. I’ve tried to get people to go on walks but it’s almost always rejected or goes unanswered.
I get my work done within the first 30-60 minutes and then I’m just babysitting my email inbox. I had a complete mental breakdown yesterday because it feels so isolating. I feel like on here I always hear about the chatty Cathy who won’t let others get their work done, where is she? I wish she would come over to my desk.
Is it just me or are others feeling this way too?
Edit: because I seem to be getting a lot of the same comments about being lazy and not needed. I never said I only work 30-60 minutes. I said I get my work done in the first 30-60 minutes and then babysit my email. Meaning if I get an email I might have another 30-60 minutes of tasks to do, but sometimes days can be slow and a lot of waiting. I’m in recruitment during a hiring freeze. We went from 60+ recruitments per person to 5-10. We will need my whole team when the freeze is lifted and we can recruit as before.
We got this!
I don't know how we used to go into an office 5 days a week, but RTO is tiring.
I’m sleepy and wish I could sleep 25 minutes before my start time instead of 2 hours because I live that far away, and the thought of traffic!
But don't get me wrong… I'm grateful for a job, I'm just no longer used to it.
If Newsom and CalHR are going to run out the clock and wait for us to strike before they are willing to negotiate fairly, then I believe the union and all of us need to stand firm and not back down. If we go on strike, we should be prepared to stay united until every one of our basic demands is addressed, without giving unnecessary concessions.
The union has already shown a willingness to negotiate by offering concessions from its original demand of 20% over three years. However, the State also needs to negotiate in good faith. For the past several months, many of our proposals have been rejected outright, despite evidence and budget information suggesting that the State has the ability to afford meaningful improvements.
My concern is that if the State intentionally runs the clock past August 30 and waits for a strike, just as we saw in 2016, then we need to make it clear that we are not striking simply to come back to the table and accept another inadequate agreement. If we are forced into a strike, then we should be prepared to fight for a comprehensive contract that meaningfully addresses our concerns: the 20% wage increase over three years, meaningful telework protections, better health insurance, and the other fundamental demands that State employees have been asking for.
Why go to war if we are not prepared to fight for a meaningful victory?
The State should understand that this is not an empty threat or a temporary disagreement. If negotiations continue to be delayed past August 30 without meaningful concessions on our basic and reasonable demands, then the union should communicate clearly that any resulting strike will be a serious and sustained fight. We should not enter a strike without a clear commitment to achieving a fair agreement.
At the same time, our goal should remain a fair contract—not conflict for the sake of conflict. We need to negotiate seriously, listen to the evidence, and reach an agreement that recognizes the value of State employees and the work we perform every day
Hi fellow WFH warriors-
I walked past an agency in downtown today and noticed a picket taking place that I wasn’t aware of.
As a union member, I expected we might receive an email or some kind of notification?
I happened to be out on a walk back to my office, but I would have loved the chance to show support and rally fellow agency coworkers!
I worry about how a low turnout may appear to others, and I’m hoping to be apart of as many protests/gatherings as possible.
I’m looking for available parking lots or garages near the Capitol that still open after 8:30am. I’ve been taking the light rail from Roseville road to archives station for my office days since RTO implemented in July. resulting in an additional commute time. And because I have to drop my kids off at school at 7:45, I don’t get into downtown until 8:30, I assumed there is no available parking downtown near the Capitol after 8am so Ive used the light rail since. so I’m just curious if there was a solution so I can drive in again. plus a homeless man’s dog took a shit on the light rail on the way home yesterday and we had to just sit with it until they got on to clean it. I’m just over it.
Follow the below steps and demand that that your State Senator supports our right to telework because right now, this is the most impactful action that you can take:
Identify your State Senator HERE** **(this will take less than 1 minute) and use the sample script below to demand our legislators support their state workers (this will take less than 2 minutes).
DO NOT MENTION CHILD CARE OR PETS OR CARE FOR YOUR ELDERS UNLESS IT’S BEFORE OR AFTER WORK HOURS.
Hi, my name is [Your name, job title, agency, neighborhood], and I’m calling to respectfully ask Senator [Name] to vote for AB 1729 when it makes its way to the Senate floor. This bill isn’t just about convenience. It’s about effectiveness, environmental impact, and financial responsibility which is all backed by research, the state’s own findings in the telework audit, and further confirmed by the Senate Labor Committee, the Senate Governmental Organizational Committee, and the Senate Appropriations Committee.
Senator [NAME] has an important voice in the Senate, and I’m asking for them to vote for AB 1729. Please urge them to vote YES on AB 1729..
Thank you so much for your time.
The problems are no longer just about raises and RTO. The big issue is that the state is not acting in good faith, is not following the law and is not honoring contracts. This is something that affects all unions.
All state employee unions should take this moment to push for reform and should be asking for support from all other unions, public and private. If the State of California is leading the charge against unions and the working class, that is a problem for everyone.
Everyone should be talking to their friends, family and neighbors about every vote their representatives make in any matter of labor and worker rights.
The 8.14.26 Senate Analysis included only one opposition: The Downtown Sacramento Partnership.
The Chair of the Board of Directors is also the Lieutenant Governor’s father.
A State Parks District Superintendent is an officer on the Board of Directors.
The Mayor of Sacramento is one of the Directors.
https://www.downtownsac.org/about/board/
Here’s their opposition:
ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION:
According to the Downtown Sacramento Partnership:
“At a time when state and local governments face persistent structural budget challenges, AB 1729 undermines taxpayer investments, weakens California’s most productive economic centers, and erodes the tax base that funds essential public services.
State agencies serve as anchor institutions in employment centers throughout California. In Sacramento, they occupy more than 60% of the downtown office market, according to Department of General Services (DGS) and CoStar data.i As a result, state workplace policies carry significant economic and fiscal consequences – impacts that AB 1729 largely ignores.
While AB 1729 requires reporting on projected savings within state agencies, it provides no mechanism to evaluate the corresponding fiscal impacts shifted onto local governments and taxpayers. Property tax, sales tax, transit occupancy tax, and related revenues that fund essential public services throughout entire jurisdictions depend on healthy, circular economic activity in high occupancy commercial centers. These fiscal outcomes are closely tied to land use and transportation policies that shape residential and employment patterns, infrastructure utilization, and regional mobility.
Policies that encourage permanent or predominantly remote work diminish the value of employment centers, weakening the economic clustering that drives commercial investment, business activity, and local tax generation. State telework policies reduce Sacramento’s economic activity by more than $218.5 million annually, according to an estimate in a 2023 report by Varshey & Associates.ii
Moreover, downtown Sacramento commercial office values have declined by $800 million since 2020.iii Those effects ultimately weaken the tax base local governments rely upon to fund police, fire, parks, education, infrastructure, and other essential services. These indicators demonstrate why evaluating only state-level office savings provides an incomplete fiscal picture.”
https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billAnalysisClient.xhtml
Edit: Formatting
Have any of you guys took time off for your mental health? How long was it?
I’ve been crying on my way to work every day since RTO. It all just feels AWFUL. I’m snapping at my kid and partner, I’m forgetting things, my sleep is awful, and my heart is SO SAD.
I’m trying to make the best of it but this feels so cruel and awful, my moral is in the dumpster. I really value what I do (wildfires!) and think it’s important for the state but I don’t feel valued at all. I feel tormented. I’m so sad for the people of CA losing so much work for us because of the depression.
It’s not just me either, my whole floor seems miserable and hallow eyed.
Hi, r/CAStateWorkers
I encourage you to check this out. It's very wonky, but if you're interested in learning more about the opposition to AB 1729 submitted by the Downtown Sacramento Partnership like I am, you're going to look into some of the organization's statements in the past years.
The position of this organization for years now has been moving away from mandates and changing up how they use downtown space. I believe an obvious answer for their opposition to AB 1729 is "They want money." True. But I am still genuinely perplexed as to why they would oppose a bill that tries to get agencies to right size their office space, as fraught of a directive as that may be given the Governor's EO.
If you would like to reach out to Downtown Sacramento Partnership to ask them why they would like mandates to guide downtown's foot traffic, I encourage you to submit a question to their website here:
https://www.downtownsac.org/about/contact/
Or feel free to call them at 916-442-8575
I would love for them to explain how the Governor's approach to mandating 4-day office attendance with no operational benefit fits into their vision for the future of Downtown.
Personally, my ask for them when calling or emailing is “Clarify how DSP’s opposition to AB 1729 is consistent with its stated vision of making downtown a destination of choice rather than a destination of obligation / and reconsider the organization’s opposition if that position depends on compelled state-worker attendance.”
This isn't the biggest priority right now. Our bill is doing well, but I truly believe it is important to engage with the stakeholders on the bill whenever possible. They threw their hat in the ring and I'd like to engage with them too.
P.S. The Downtown Sacramento Partnership is chaired by Angelo G. Tsakopoulos, father of Lt. Governor Kounalakis.