San Francisco Teachers Union Avoids Strike By Reaching New Deal With District

The United Educators of San Francisco (UESF) teachers union reached a deal with the San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) on Friday, narrowly avoiding the first teacher’s strike to occur in the city since 1979.

For the past three years, teachers in San Francisco have warned of a possible strike if teacher pay did not increase by the end of the union contract in June. Frustration of the school system in the city grew city-wide during this time as well, evidenced by the recall of three school board members, lending credence to their complaints.

With a strike on borrowed time following the passing of the June deadline, both the UESF and SFUSD tried to nail down a solution. However, following months of intense negotiations, neither side has come come close to wanting what the other side has demanded.

The latest proposals from both sides came on October 5th. The SFUSD proposed a $10,000 per certified teacher step, with a 4% increase for next year. Raises would also begiven to everyone, including nurses and teachers, but only said that they are “increases” without a dollar amount or percentage specifically noted. The district, meanwhile, offered a 5% increase or $30 minimum hourly rate and longevity pay of only 1-4% increases. SEIU employees would only get a 6% raise with no lump sum payment with raises contingent on if San Francisco’s financial situation gets better.

With talks at a standstill, the UESF voted to authorize a strike last week, pressuring the SFUSD to reach a deal before a large chunk of the 2023-2024 school year would be lost, having to be made up later in the school year, or be staffed by temporary replacement teachers. With a strike now looming over the district, both sides soon went back to bargaining this week. At 6 A.M. on Friday, both sides finally reached an agreement, ended what would have been the first teachers strike in San Francisco since Dianne Feinstein was Mayor.

“At 6 am, our big bargaining team reached a tentative agreement with the district!” tweeted the UESF on Friday. “This TA is a direct result of our collective power.”

According to the new two-year agreement, certified teachers will get a $9,000 per certified teacher step with a 5% increase for next year. Other teachers are to receive a $30 per hour minimum rate or 8% increase in their first year, followed by a 5% increase in the second year. Substitute teachers, meanwhile, will get a 15% raise in the next two years, with a flat pay rate being installed in favor of the previous two-tiered pay rate. Improved working conditions, more student support, and protections for special education are also tied into the new agreement.

“Every win in this tentative agreement is the direct result of the organizing and advocating by educators, families, and community supporters who showed up and pushed the district to agree to a fair contract that would stabilize our school,” added the UESF in a statement. “Since we started this process in March, educators and families have been rallying, picketing, and fighting for the school our students deserve. This TA is a direct result of our collective power.”

While the San Francisco Board of Education and UESF members will still need to vote on the new agreement, it is widely expected that both sides will sign off on it in the coming weeks. Under that timeline, the new two-year deal should be in place by November.

“Both sides got things that they wanted,” said Hank Poole, an education budget advisor. “San Francisco can’t afford to lose any teachers right now in an education-quality sense, and they can’t afford any huge raises in a fiscal sense. Teachers, on the other side of things, have been struggling financially. San Francisco is still a very expensive city to live in. And neither side wanted to see so many teachers leaving because of the costs.”

“And yeah. Private school enrollment in the city has been going up significantly. Over half the students in the city attend private schools now primarily because of the numerous issues with public schools. And between that and population losses, SFUSD public school enrollment has been going down too, right again. It should be telling that the teachers who remain in public schools still needed such a significant pay raise. Both sides know that, if that doesn’t come into place, more teachers will be lost to private schools or out of town.”

“That’s the big reason for this raise. San Francisco needs to remain competitive to keep teachers. Cost of living is huge too, but the city just cannot afford to keep bleeding teachers like this. Even with a lower enrollment they are still short on teachers. They hope that this will help stop that.”

Both the Board of Education and the UESF rank and file are to vote on the new agreement soon.