On Wednesday, July 29, numerous San Jose city staffers and members of IFPTE Local 21 and MEF-AFSCME Local 101 will join Strike School to understand strike procedures and legal protections for their rights. Planning for Strike School follows months of stalled talks between city workers and the City Administration. Staffers have signed a strike pledge and organized multiple informational pickets to highlight San Jose as the most thinly staffed agency in the state, plus the City's rollout of AI without safeguards that further threatens quality public services. Workers must handle increased loads with fewer resources across all city departments. This Strike School session marks the second of two, with the first held on Saturday, July 25, drawing hundreds of members.

Who: Hundreds of City of San Jose employees represented by IFPTE Local 21 and MEF-AFSCME Local 101. Spokespeople will be available for interviews before the members-only program.

What: San Jose Strike School Session #2

When/Where: Wednesday, July 29, 2026, at San Jose First United Methodist Church (24 N 5th St, San Jose, CA 95112). The program begins at 5:30 pm; registration begins at 5:00 pm

Visuals: Workers in blue, green, and teal union shirts, with banners and picket signs

BACKGROUND: In June, after receiving the City's Last, Best, and Final Offer (LBFO) and working to reach a deal before contract expiration and City Council's summer recess, San Jose workers called for mediation in order to reach a fair agreement.

Now, at the end of July, members of both unions have been without a contract for over a month. Instead of investing in our community, city officials have elected to spend taxpayer money on corporate giveaways through massive contracts with ineffective AI companies and an outrageous $325 million subsidy towards hockey arena renovations. The City could develop a strategy that ensures corporations pay their fair share from benefitting directly from city services. Instead, San Jose insists on cutting taxes for some of the largest corporations that occupy the city, while residents and working families pay more. Workers are preparing to go on strike if necessary.

SOURCE IFPTE Local 21