A California school district is having its first teachers strike in 150 years
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Hundreds of teachers in southeast Los Angeles County went on strike Thursday in the Little Lake City School District, marking the first teacher work stoppage in the district’s 150-year history.After months of stalled negotiations over healthcare costs, class sizes and support for special education, the teacher union, the Little Lake Education Assn., said recent changes to their healthcare have amounted to steep pay cuts, while the district has spent unnecessarily on substitute teachers and consultants.“They’ve spent millions on outside contractors instead of investing in our classrooms.Our students deserve better, and we refuse to accept cuts that harm both educators and the learning conditions our students depend on,” Maria Pilios, the union’s president, said in a statement.Over the past year, health benefits have been an issue for teacher unions up and down the state.
Some have been trying to prevent steep rises in costs for employees.Others have joined a push to win benefits similar to those in Los Angeles Unified, where teachers and most other employees do not have to pay monthly premiums for themselves and immediate family members.
California With a major LAUSD strike averted, Tuesday changed from a day of anxiety to one of celebrating new deals for unions.But are they too expensive?In a memo the district provided to parents on social media, Supt.
Jonathan Vasquez said that with rising healthcare costs across the state and country, it could not continue to maintain its level of direct contributions for employee’s healthcare while also maintaining class sizes and student support services.Vasquez said that in the last few years the district has spent more than the revenue it had received, and used reserve funds to continue to subsidize benefits and students services.
According to the Little Lake Education Assn., in January, the district imposed a cap on healthca...