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Bronx public defenders head back to court as strike ends
By
Samantha Max
Published Aug 7, 2026
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Samantha Max / Gothamist
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Samantha Max
Published Aug 7, 2026
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Hundreds of public defenders, social workers and other support staff in the Bronx are going back to work after more than a week on strike.
Unionized employees at The Bronx Defenders have reached a tentative agreement for a new contract that would increase salaries for all employees and raise the annual cost-of-living adjustment, according to the legal services organization. The tentative agreement, reached Thursday night, would also expand time off, student loan support and retirement benefits.
Executive Director Juval O. Scott said in a statement that the new contract would help the organization to recruit and retain attorneys, social workers, investigators, advocates and support staff.
“These investments will strengthen the shared purpose that brought us all to The Bronx Defenders: standing beside individuals and families across the Bronx when they need us most,” she said. “The people we serve deserve an office that is strong, united, and prepared to fight for them without exception.”
The tentative deal now goes to union members for a vote.
Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem ended a dayslong strike earlier this week after reaching its own tentative agreement. Unionized employees at Brooklyn Defender Services, the city’s second-largest public defender organization, also went on strike this summer amid a dispute over pay, sick time and a location-tracking app that required staff to clock in and out.
The courts remained open throughout the strikes. Clients either had their court appearances delayed or had non-unionized attorneys represent them temporarily while their assigned lawyers were on the picket lines.
Tagged
bronx
labor
public safety
Samantha Max
Samantha reports on whether New Yorkers feel safe and whether the institutions that are supposed to protect them are working. Before coming to WNYC/Gothamist, she spent three years covering the criminal justice system in Tennessee for Nashville Public Radio. Her reporting on Nashville's police department received multiple awards, including the Daniel Schorr Journalism Prize. Samantha was also part of the inaugural class of Report for America, a service journalism program that sends up-and-coming reporters to local newsrooms across the country. She is a Northwestern University grad, a Baltimore native and fluent in Spanish. Got a tip? Email [email protected] or Signal: samanthamaxwnyc.93.
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