As classes in the nation's second-largest school district resumed Friday after a three-day workers strike that shut down classroom education, the mayor of Los Angeles, LAUSD superintendent, and executive director of SEIU held a news conference at City Hall, announcing a deal.
Mayor Karen Bass, Executive Director of SEIU Max Arias, and LAUSD Superintendent Alberto Carvalho, spoke at the news conference as Carvalho called it a historic day.
The mayor along with Carvalho announced a multi-year agreement with SEIU for the nearly 30,000 workers, saying they will receive "significantly" increased salaries.
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Carvalho also announced retroactive pay, going back to 2020.
The new contracts will span from July 1, 2020 through June 30, 2024.
- Salary increases of:
- 6% ongoing wage increase retroactive to July 1, 2021
- 7% ongoing wage increase retroactive to July 1, 2022
- 7% ongoing wage increase effective July 1, 2023
- $2 per hour increase for all employees effective January 1, 2024
- Provide a $1,000 appreciation bonus for current employees who were with the District in the 2020-21 school year in recognition of in-person work during adverse circumstances caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Bring our Los Angeles Unified minimum wage to $22.52 an hour, outpacing the City of Los Angeles and the State of California.
- Secure health benefits for part-time employees assigned to work four or more hours a day, including coverage for their qualified dependents.
- Increase hours and compensation for paraprofessionals serving students with special needs.
- Invest $3 million in an Education and Professional Development Fund for SEIU members.
In addition, the District and SEIU reached agreement on the following:
- Respectful treatment
- Bus bidding process
- Terms for mandatory overtime
- Joint Labor Management Committee for other issues
Carvalho called it historic for the district.
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"There are no more strikes planned for the rest of the year," said Max Arias.
"All @LASchools will reopen this Friday, March 24. We are grateful for the assistance and support of our partners, and we look forward to seeing our students and employees back at school,'' the district tweeted Thursday night.
Max Arias, executive director of SEIU Local 99, said the union was grateful that Bass was helping “find a path out of our current impasse.”
Thousands of service workers backed by teachers began the strike Tuesday against the Los Angeles Unified School District, chanting and marching in picket lines during a storm that brought rain, wind and cold temperatures. Local 99 of the Service Employees International Union, which represents about 30,000 teachers’ aides, special education assistants, bus drivers, custodians, cafeteria workers and other support staff, walked out as contract talks stalled, leading to the temporary school closures.
Teachers joined rain-soaked picket lines early Tuesday as workers demanded better wages and increased staffing before heading to a huge rally outside the district's headquarters in downtown Los Angeles. Some held signs that read “We keep schools safe, Respect Us!” The district has more than 500,000 students from Los Angeles and all or part of 25 other cities and unincorporated county areas. Nearly three-quarters are Latino.
Leaders of United Teachers Los Angeles, the union representing 35,000 educators, counselors and other staff, earlier pledged solidarity with the strikers.
Superintendent Alberto M. Carvalho accused the union of refusing to negotiate and said that he was prepared to meet at any time day or night.
During the strike, about 150 of the district's more than 1,000 schools remained open with adult supervision but no instruction, to give students somewhere to go. Dozens of libraries and parks, plus some “grab and go” spots for students to get lunches also planned to be open to kids to lessen the strain on parents now scrambling to find care.
The union says district support staffers earn, on average, about $25,000 per year and many live in poverty because of low pay or limited work hours while struggling with inflation and the high cost of housing in Los Angeles County. The union is asking for a 30% raise. Teachers want a 20% pay hike over two years.
The district has offered a cumulative 23% raise, starting with 2% retroactive as of the 2020-21 school year and ending with 5% in 2024-25. The package would also include a one-time 3% bonus for those who have been on the job more than a year, along with more full-time positions and an expansion of healthcare benefits.
SEIU members have been working without a contract since June 2020, while the contract for teachers expired in June 2022. The unions decided last week to stop accepting extensions to their contracts.
Teachers waged a six-day strike in 2019 over pay and contract issues but schools remained open.
