West Contra Costa Unified School District and the teachers union, United Teachers of Richmond (UTR), have been trying to reach an agreement since February. Teachers have been working under an expired contract since June.
The union is asking for a 10 percent raise over two years, but the district is offering only a two percent raise with slightly better healthcare coverage.
Francisco Ortiz, president of UTR, says a strike “seems very likely.”
"We're not at the brink of a strike because educators didn't speak up," he said in a phone call with KALW. "We're here right now because leadership has refused to listen."
In addition to a salary raise, teachers say the district needs to improve special education programming and address staffing shortages. They point to a steady loss of talent. Ortiz says 1,500 teachers have left WCCUSD since 2019 — a pool larger than the union’s membership.
Teamsters Local 856 — the union that represents food service workers, school security, and other roles in the district — is also in contract negotiations. Like UTR, its members have also authorized a strike.
Together, UTR and Teamsters are WCCUSD's two largest employee unions.
The district said in a message on November 24 that it is committed to reaching a fair resolution and averting a strike. WCCUSD has to cut $7.7 million this year to balance its budget.
"Like a family budget, we can only spend what we can afford," said superintendent Cheryl Cotton in a video message posted to the district’s website.
A state-appointed mediator will release a fact-finding report by November 28.
The report will have non-binding recommendations for how to resolve this dispute.
Once the report drops, the teachers union can call for a strike with 48 hours notice — though teachers say they will be at school on December 1 after the fall break.
