Anthropic Directs San Francisco Employees to Work from Home Over Rumored Security Strike

Anthropic instructed its San Francisco employees to work from home on Monday and Tuesday after receiving a warning from security contractor Allied Universal about a potential strike. However, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), which represents the security guards, denied that any strike had been planned or authorized. This incident underscores the heightened physical security concerns for leading AI firms, which have increasingly faced threats against their staff. It also highlights how labor disputes in supporting services like security can directly disrupt the hybrid work operations of major tech companies. While Anthropic typically operates on a hybrid model requiring employees to spend at least 25% of their time in the office, this directive temporarily suspended that policy. The SEIU clarified that while they are in ongoing contract negotiations for better wages and benefits, no strike vote has been held.