West Contra Costa Unified educators and union supporters, from left, Lisa McCaskill, Phi Do-Lui, Michelle Seymoure, Jessy Kronenberg and Ruth Fleeman picket outside the El Cerrito High School during the districtwide strike.
Credit: Michelle Quinn / EdSource
Top Takeaways
- West Contra Costa Unified teachers will return to classrooms on Thursday.
- Teachers receive an 8% pay raise over two years.
- The district had a $17 million deficit last year, according to a report.
West Contra Costa Unified School District teachers, librarians, health care staff and counselors will return to their classrooms Thursday after nearly a week of picketing, rallies and negotiations with the district.
The agreement came after a 12-hour marathon bargaining session that ended at 2 a.m. Wednesday, according to the United Teachers of Richmond. The district and the teachers union had been in contract negotiations since February.
The 1,450 union members went on strike on Dec. 4, demanding that the district increase their pay by 5% this school year. They also asked for protection for teachers on H-1B visas, smaller class sizes, and improvements to special education instruction.
The tentative agreement gives teachers an 8% pay increase over two years and requires the district to pay 100% of their health premiums. Special education teachers will see an additional boost in pay and retention bonuses.
It also includes retention bonuses for new teachers who graduated from a West Contra Costa Unified high school, protections for international teachers, and commitments to modernize existing facilities and keep classroom temperatures between 68 and 76 degrees.
The tentative agreement will become final after the school board approves it and union members ratify it.
“By forcing WCCUSD to invest in improved wages and healthcare, we’ve made important progress in ending the district’s decades-long staffing crisis,” said Gabrielle Micheletti, union vice president and co-bargaining chair, in a statement. “This contract is a strong foundation for us to continue to build the learning environments our students deserve.”
The district had not issued a public statement or returned emails requesting comment about the agreement by press time Wednesday morning.
This is the first teachers strike in the history of the school district, which serves 24,000 students at more than 50 schools. Union leaders said the strike was necessary to address staffing shortages and improve classroom safety. According to the union, more than 1,500 teachers have left the district in the last five years, often because of low pay.
The district, which had a deficit of nearly $17 million last year, according to a neutral fact-finding report, had said that it can’t afford the raises.
New teachers at the first step of the salary schedule currently earn $58,500 annually, while teachers with a master’s degree and more than 27 years of experience, at the top step of the schedule, earn $119,000. Teachers receive annual step increases based on their education level and time in the district.
An EdSource analysis found that under the current salary schedule, the average West Contra Costa Unified teacher would have to pay 35% of their salary to rent a two-bedroom apartment in the area, with new teachers paying as much as about 55% of their pay toward rent.
During the strike, administrators and school staff led instruction and supervised students, and parents were given the option to enroll their children in independent study.
Teachers were initially joined on the picket line by members of Teamsters Local Union 856, which represents custodians, paraprofessionals, food service, security staff and clerical workers.
The Teamsters union and the school district reached a tentative agreement on Sunday. The new contract increases members’ salaries 3% this school year, retroactive to July 1, and 4% next school year. It also increases the amount the district pays toward health insurance.
EdSource data journalist Daniel Willis contributed to this report.