Portland, Oregon: About 800 City Workers Set to Strike Monday After Mediation Fails

About 800 City of Portland workers are set to strike at 12:01 a.m. on Monday, November 9, after a Sunday mediation session ended without an agreement. The City of Portland Professional Workers Union, known as CPPW, said its bargaining team put forward a compromise proposal during the session, which included a meeting with Mayor Keith Wilson, and the city team rejected it. Mediation concluded before 6 p.m. on Sunday, and the union said no next mediation session has been confirmed.

CPPW represents more than 800 employees across every city bureau, according to the City of Portland, and is one of 17 bargaining units covering more than 80 percent of the city's roughly 7,500 employees. Its members do professional, administrative and operational work across the city. Picket lines are set for Monday at the wastewater treatment plant at 5001 N Columbia Boulevard from 5:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and at Portland City Hall, 1221 SW Fourth Avenue, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., the union said.

A contract reopened in January

The two sides reached a first collective bargaining agreement in May 2025 and reopened it in January 2026 on four articles: wages, layoffs and recall, standby and callback, and hours of work, according to the city. CPPW members authorized a strike with a 93 percent vote, the union said. The union says it is seeking fair compensation, equitable wage increases, stability and respect on the job. The city says the union proposal adds base wage increases and longevity pay on top of the same cost of living adjustments the city has offered.

The city's current proposal is a 3 percent cost of living increase retroactive to July 1, 2026, another one time bonus of 1,000 dollars, a cost of living increase of between 1 and 4 percent in July 2027, currently projected at about 3.6 percent, and a 350 dollar annual safety gear allowance for eligible employees, according to the city bargaining page.

The costing fight

The two sides also disagree on what the union proposal would cost. The city says its own proposal would add about 9 million dollars over the remaining contract, while the union proposal would add about 19 million dollars over the same period, roughly 10 million dollars more. The union disputes the city's math. CPPW President Kari Koch said the city's costing formula includes about 100 vacant positions amid a hiring freeze.

"It's disappointing, but not surprising, that the City continues to bargain with us in bad faith," Koch said in the union statement on Sunday.

The union bargaining team said Mayor Wilson acknowledged on Sunday that a CPPW strike would have a profound impact on city services, while continuing to say publicly that services will not be disrupted. The city says it is prepared to maintain the essential services Portlanders rely on every day if a strike occurs. As of Sunday evening, neither side had announced a new bargaining session, and the walkout was set to begin at 12:01 a.m. Monday.