Anthropic Orders San Francisco Staff to Work Remotely Amid Potential Security Strike

Anthropic instructed its San Francisco employees to work remotely due to the possibility of a strike by security staff employed through Allied Universal, the company's security service provider, according to a source familiar with the situation.

Last week, Allied Universal notified Anthropic that its security personnel might initiate a strike. As a precaution, Anthropic advised its workers not to attend the San Francisco offices on the upcoming Monday and Tuesday, the source said.

The Service Employees International Union (SEIU), representing Allied Universal's security workers, confirmed ongoing contract negotiations but denied authorizing any strike vote or issuing strike threats for that week.

"We are in protracted contract negotiations with Allied and other California security firms," said a SEIU representative. "The union has not called a strike authorization vote or issued any strike threats for this week."

SEIU has been negotiating a new contract since April on behalf of thousands of security workers in California, seeking higher wages, improved healthcare, and expanded job training.

Anthropic declined to comment on the decision to mandate remote work.

Security expenses have increased across the technology sector in recent years. The Wall Street Journal reported that both Anthropic and OpenAI have faced threats directed at their employees.

According to job postings, Anthropic maintains a hybrid work policy, requiring employees to be in the office at least 25% of the time.

The company is expected to file for an initial public offering as early as August, having submitted a confidential draft registration in June. Investors in secondary markets have valued Anthropic at approximately $1.5 billion.