The latest round of contract negotiations between Los Angeles Unified School District and United Teachers Los Angeles appears to be coming to a head after the release of a fact-finding report that was the last legal step necessary before teachers would be able to formally strike for the first time in almost 30 years.
Union leaders have
Join us December 19 at 10am for an important UTLA announcement. @kystokes @howardblume @KNX1070 @ABC7 @ladailynews @LAist @KTLAMorningNews @Univision @TELEMUNDO52 @avalverdenews @NU34LA @LarryMantle @guzmanlopez @jas_mint @anniegilbertson @KTLA @NBCLA @CBSLA @KCBSKCALDesk pic.twitter.com/UxeZ17zght
— United Teachers Los Angeles (@UTLAnow) December 19, 2018
a 10 a.m. press conference on Wednesday morning, though it’s unclear right now what they’ll be announcing.
The report was designed to include suggestions for both sides on how they might find common ground, but there’s no legal requirement that either the district or teachers implement any of the impartial panel’s recommendations. Teachers are asking for a 6.5 percent raise retroactive to July of 2016, a particular sticking point in negotiations, and the district has offered a 3 percent raise retroactive to July 1, 2017 and an additional 3 percent for the current year. On Tuesday, LAUSD Superintendent Austin Beutner suggested during a news conference that the union had accepted the district’s offer for compensation, which prompted a strong rebuke from union leaders who scolded Beutner for the comment and demanded that he retract it.
For more on the negotiations and fact-finding report from KPCC education reporter Kyle Stokes on LAist.com, click here.
Guests:
Alex Caputo-Pearl, president of United Teachers Los Angeles
Kyle Stokes, education reporter at KPCC, who is at the UTLA headquarters in Koreatown