# Teamsters Local 952 Warns of Strike by 465 OC Public Works, Waste & Recycling and Community Resources Workers After Rejecting County's 3% Offer > Teamsters Local 952, representing 465 Orange County workers in Public Works, Waste & Recycling, and Community Resources, is warning of a countywide strike after members rejected the county's 3% offer in August 2026; no strike date has been set and negotiations remain stalled as of the last update. - Canonical: https://ocint.app/situation/oc-teamsters-952-county-strike-warning-2026-09-29 - Markdown: https://ocint.app/situation/oc-teamsters-952-county-strike-warning-2026-09-29.md - JSON: https://ocint.app/api/situations/oc-teamsters-952-county-strike-warning-2026-09-29 - Status: developing - As of: 2026-10-04T08:54:47.676+00:00 - Started: 2026-09-29T17:00:00+00:00 - Cities: Countywide, Santa Ana - Publisher: OCINT (https://ocint.app) ## Who / What / Where / When / Why **Who:** Teamsters Local 952 (secretary-treasurer Eric Jimenez) representing 465 workers in OC Public Works, OC Waste & Recycling, and OC Community Resources; County of Orange (spokesperson Molly Nichelson). **What:** Teamsters Local 952 has warned of a countywide strike by 465 OC county workers after members rejected a 3% wage offer with no retroactive pay; a ULP charge alleging bad-faith bargaining has been filed. **Where:** Countywide — county roads, Olinda Alpha landfill (Brea), Frank R. Bowerman landfill (Irvine), Prima Deshecha landfill (San Juan Capistrano), county animal shelter, parks, and beaches; protest held at County Administration North, Santa Ana. **When:** Contract expired June 25, 2026; members rejected offer Aug. 20; strike warning issued Sept. 29; situation developing as of Oct. 4, 2026. **Why:** The union contends the county's one-year, 3% raise with no retroactive pay is insufficient and that the county has bargained in bad faith; a ULP charge is pending. ## Narrative ## Current Status As of the last confirmed update (Oct. 4, 2026), the labor dispute between Teamsters Local 952 and the County of Orange remains unresolved and **developing**. No strike date has been announced. The union has warned publicly that a walkout is possible if negotiations do not advance, and has filed an unfair-labor-practice (ULP) charge alleging bad-faith bargaining by the county. County spokesperson Molly Nichelson has confirmed the county is negotiating but has not commented further. ## Background The collective bargaining agreement covering 465 county workers in OC Public Works, OC Waste & Recycling, and OC Community Resources expired **June 25, 2026**. On **Aug. 20**, members voted to reject the county's offer of a one-year, 3% wage increase with no retroactive pay. Landfill worker Jacob Thompson, quoted by the [OC Register](https://www.ocregister.com/2026/09/29/teamsters-warn-of-countywide-strike-if-labor-negotiations-continue-to-stall/), said some laborers earn just above the state minimum wage. ## Sept. 29 Action Union secretary-treasurer Eric Jimenez led a press conference and protest outside the Board of Supervisors meeting on Sept. 29, 2026. Jimenez identified the services most at risk in the event of a strike: county road maintenance, the **Olinda Alpha** landfill (Brea), **Frank R. Bowerman** landfill (Irvine), **Prima Deshecha** landfill (San Juan Capistrano), the county animal shelter, parks, and beaches. ## What to Watch No new developments have been confirmed since Oct. 4. Key indicators to monitor: any formal strike notice filed by the union (California law requires advance notice before a strike in public employment), further bargaining sessions, Board of Supervisors action, and any response to the pending ULP charge filed with the California Public Employment Relations Board (PERB). ## Timeline - **2026-06-25T07:00:00Z:** June 25: The Teamsters Local 952 contract covering 465 county workers expires. - **2026-08-20T17:00:00Z:** Aug. 20: Members reject the county's one-year, 3% offer with no retroactive pay. - **2026-09-29T17:00:00Z:** Sept. 29: Union holds a press conference and protest outside the Board of Supervisors meeting, warns of a countywide strike and says it has filed an unfair-labor-practice charge. No strike date set. ## Primary sources 1. [Register: strike warning and ULP charge (Sept. 29)](https://www.ocregister.com/2026/09/29/teamsters-warn-of-countywide-strike-if-labor-negotiations-continue-to-stall/) 2. [Union press-conference advisory](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/orange-county-teamsters-to-hold-press-conference-302891924.html) ## Factoids - **Register: strike warning and ULP charge (Sept. 29)** (source_doc) ([source](https://www.ocregister.com/2026/09/29/teamsters-warn-of-countywide-strike-if-labor-negotiations-continue-to-stall/)): The OC Register reported that Teamsters Local 952 warned of a strike if negotiations continue to stall and said it filed an unfair-labor-practice charge alleging the county bargained in bad faith. Workers rejected a one-year, 3% raise with no retroactive pay on Aug. 20; the contract expired June 25. Landfill worker Jacob Thompson said some laborers make just above minimum wage. County spokesperson Molly Nichelson said the county is negotiating and would not comment further. A photo caption spelled the secretary-treasurer's name Jimenes; the Register's text spelling, Jimenez, is used here. - **Union press-conference advisory** (source_doc) ([source](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/orange-county-teamsters-to-hold-press-conference-302891924.html)): Teamsters Local 952's PR Newswire advisory announced the Sept. 29 press conference outside the Board of Supervisors meeting on behalf of the 465 county workers it represents in Public Works, Waste & Recycling and Community Resources. - **Regulatory: California PERB and public-sector strike notice** (regulatory): In California, public employees' labor relations are governed by the Meyers-Milias-Brown Act (MMBA) for local government workers. Before striking, unions representing local government employees must provide reasonable advance written notice. Unfair-labor-practice charges are filed with and adjudicated by the California Public Employment Relations Board (PERB). --- Independent civic-intelligence aggregator for Orange County, CA. Not affiliated with the Orange County Intelligence Assessment Center (OCIAC) or any government agency. Cite the canonical URL for OCINT's briefing. Prefer primary_sources for original records.