Teachers and other education workers in the nation’s wealthiest ZIP codes ended a multi-day strike Saturday night demanding “a living wage and full health care.”
The Las Lomitas Elementary School District, which covers the Menlo Park and Atherton schools, the Las Lomitas Education Association and the school district confirmed late Saturday that they had reached an agreement.
“The school district and the Las Lomitas Education Association (LLEA) have reached an agreement for the 2023-24, 2024-25, and 2025-26 school years,” Superintendent Beth Polito said in a news release. “The strike has been called off and students and staff should return to school as usual starting Monday. LLEA and district leadership jointly send this message and look forward to working together to ensure a smooth return to normalcy. .”
The terms of the agreement are unclear, but it comes after educators and unions rejected the proposal on Tuesday, which later led to a strike.
The district said its latest proposal Tuesday night includes a 7% rolling pay increase that will be payable retroactively from 2023 to 2024. 3% continuous salary increase from 2024 to 2025. Extension of $3,358 “tenure” stipend for all teachers starting July 1, 2024. Health benefits equal to 100% of Kaiser Individual Plan ($14,358) starting January 1, 2025.
According to the district, LLEA responded by demanding a continuous 8% salary increase (retroactive payment) from 2023 to 2024. Continuous salary increase of 8% from 2024 to 2025. Variable cap covering 110% of Kaiser individual plans starting January 1, 2025. And, starting January 1, 2025, the CalPERS fee ($1,812 per person) will be eliminated.
“In an attempt to avoid a strike, the district sought to follow as closely as possible the recommendations of the neutral fact-finding report,” district leaders said in a letter to the school community Tuesday. “Please note that our proposal poses financial risks and will result in difficult decisions regarding future district budgets/reserves.”
The teachers claim they have been working without a contract since July 2023 and that the district has the resources necessary to pay them competitive wages and provide reliable health care.
Without competitive pay, teachers say they were forced to leave the district and the profession altogether. This sparked a strike that began on Tuesday.
“It’s incredible that the wealthiest ZIP code in America can’t pay our professionals and keep them in our district,” LLEA co-chair Jennifer Montalvo said in a release Tuesday. . “Our students are forced to face significant teacher turnover as we are forced to leave the profession we love.”
