The Abridged version:
- Teachers at Natomas Unified will begin striking next Tuesday, March 10, if final negotiations this week fail to produce an agreement.
- The union and school district are concluding the final round of bargaining, culminating in a neutral mediator’s report at the end of the week.
- If teachers take to the picket lines, the district has said schools are to remain open.
Natomas Unified may have its first ever teacher strike starting next Tuesday, if the educators’ union and school district officials do not come to an agreement in the coming days.
The school district and union will be at the bargaining table again for new meetings this week, culminating in a report from a neutral mediator that will lay out middle ground recommendations. Union representatives said they are hopeful a deal can be reached.
The two sides had anticipated that report, the last step before a strike can occur, on Monday. Natomas teachers had eyed a potential strike this week, at the same time as their neighbors in Twin Rivers Unified.
But the report’s release was delayed to Friday, and the union has set their start date for March 10.
“We are working hard to reach an agreement that makes our students the priority and breaks the cycle of educators having to work two or three jobs just to afford to do the job they love, teaching,” Nico Vaccaro, president of the Natomas Teachers’ Association, said in a statement. “We are able and willing to bargain for as long as it takes.”
There are about 16,000 students in the Sacramento-area district.
Schools to stay open
Natomas officials have said regardless of a strike, classes will continue.
School board members last week approved an emergency resolution to hire substitute teachers, paying them a rate of up to $600 a day.
“While we sincerely hope that NTA will not strike,” officials said in a Feb. 26 message to families, referring to the teachers union, “we have a responsibility to our students, families, and staff to plan proactively and thoughtfully.”
“Taking this action ensures we are prepared to meet our obligations and maintain stable, safe learning environments for every student we serve.”
After-school programs will remain open, according to the district. Choosing to stay home because of the strike — as the union has called for students and families to do — will count as an unexcused absence.
On the heels of other districts’ teacher strikes
The announcement from Natomas teachers comes as educators in Twin Rivers are gearing up for their own strike this week.
After a mediator’s report failed to reach any consensus, Twin Rivers United Educators said their members will be on the picket line starting Thursday.
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Twin Rivers and Natomas are two of three districts in the Sacramento region facing stalled bargaining, along with Washington Unified in West Sacramento. The three local unions are also part of a statewide coalition, spearheaded by the California Teachers Association.
The “We Can’t Wait” campaign, comprised of more than 30 unions, has been the driving force behind two strikes and over a dozen strike threats so far this school year.
Savannah Kuchar is a reporter covering education. She came to Sacramento to be a part of the Abridged team and contribute to a crucial local news source.