OC Workers Prepare To Strike After Contract Delays With County

ORANGE COUNTY, CA — Hundreds of members of union workers may strike in Orange County next week, significantly impacting many essential government services for residents, if a new contract agreement is not reached with the county.

Members of Teamsters Local 952 work across Orange County Public Works, Orange County Waste & Recycling, Orange County Community Resources and other county operations, and more than 465 County of Orange Teamsters members are set to strike Tuesday.

A strike would cause delays to road and flood channel maintenance, landfill operations, park and beach maintenance, repairs to county and first responder vehicles, and other public services.

"The County has shown that its priorities are not with the workers who keep Orange County running or the more than 3 million residents who depend on the services our members provide," Secretary-treasurer of Teamsters Local 952 Eric Jimenez said in a statement. "We are giving the county every opportunity to come to the table and reach an agreement before Tuesday. If they continue to refuse to deliver a fair contract that values our members and their work, we are prepared to strike."

Teamsters called on the county to begin bargaining as early as December 2025, more than six months before the previous agreement expired. The union began submitting proposals in March, but the county did not make meaningful movement toward an agreement until August. The months of delays have already cost workers wages they will not recover because the county has refused to provide retroactive pay.

The union pointed out that the contract dispute also comes months after the Orange County Board of Supervisors voted to increase supervisors' salaries by 25%, an increase of approximately $49,000 per supervisor annually, making the annual salary more than $244,000.

CNS reached out for comment and the current status of contract negotiations and await Orange County's response.

City News Service contributed to this report.