What’s in the deal to end the LAUSD teachers’ strike? A look at the details
The Los Angeles Unified School District and the teachers union came to a tentative agreement Tuesday morning. Here are some of the elements included in the three-year contract, which union members were to vote on Tuesday afternoon:
Teachers asked for a 6.5% raise.
For the record:
2:00 p.m. Jan. 23, 2019A previous version of this article said that the district would establish 30 community schools and allocate $350,000 to each of them. It will provide $400,000 per school.
- They got 6% — 3% retroactive to the 2017-18 school and an additional 3% retroactive to July 2018.
But their concerns didn’t center on money. They wanted smaller class sizes.
- The contract calls for schools to see a class size reduction of about four students in three years — though 90 high-needs schools will see classes drop by six students in that time.
- The contract eliminates a clause that currently allows the district to exceed the agreed-upon maximum class sizes.
- The district would have until the 2022-23 school year to reach the agreed-upon class size averages and maximums.
Teachers also wanted more hiring to build up support staff on campuses. The contract calls for the district to hire:
- Enough nurses over the next three years to staff every school with a full-time nurse, five days a week. The district says it will hire 300 more nurses over the next two years.
- Enough librarians to staff libraries on secondary-school campuses. The district says it will hire 82 teacher librarians over the next two years.
- Enough counselors to bring the ratio closer to one counselor per 500 students at middle and high schools. Right now, there is one counselor for every 690 to 890 students, depending on the school. The district says it will hire 17 full-time counselors in the 2019-20 school year, and an additional 60 in 2021-22.
The union has been calling for a cap on charter schools, which cannot be negotiated as part of a labor contract. Members did gain some control over sharing campuses with charter schools:
- At each school that shares a campus, the union will be able to appoint a “colocation coordinator” who will be invited to meetings and provide input in the process.
The contract also would improve working conditions for special education, early education and adult education teachers.
The union also made gains in areas that were not as much of a public focus during the strike. The district will:
- Eliminate random searches in 28 schools by 2020-21.
- Assign a lawyer to help students and families with “immigration-related concerns.”
- Establish 30 campuses known as community schools, investing $400,000 in each one over two years. Such schools are supposed to provide social services to students and family, rich academic programs that include the arts and leadership roles for parents and teachers.
Some issues yielded task forces rather than promises.
- The union initially asked for teacher control over testing. Instead, a joint union-district task force will recommend ways to “reduce the amount of district assessments by 50%.”
- A task force will come up with a plan to increase green space on campuses, especially those farther from parks.
- An ethnic studies task force will review school offerings and suggest curriculum and professional development.
Reach Sonali Kohli at [email protected] or on Twitter @Sonali_Kohli.
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