Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/1463867
Bargaining Roundup Compiled by Julian Peeples ROHNERT PARK COTATI: Win after six-day strike After six powerful days on the picket line, the Rohnert Park Cotati Educators Association won a tentative agreement on March 17, ending their strike. The agreement provides a 14.6 percent raise over three years. RPCEA members will also receive a $2,000 off-schedule bonus this year and a $1,000 bonus next year. The new contract will help improve the reten- tion and recruitment of quality educators for the schools that Rohnert Park Cotati students deserve. Cotati-Rohnert Park Unified School District has been paying RPCEA educators almost 20 percent less than the state average, leading the state-appointed fact-finder to rec- ommend the 14.6 percent raise. The strike became a communitywide move- ment, with parents keeping their children home in solidarity and joining educators on the picket line. Support came from other CTA locals, SEIU 1021, and the Teamsters Joint Council 7. The CTA Board of Directors also joined RPCEA, bringing love and energy from CTA's 310,000 members to the streets of Rohnert Park and Cotati. " Thank you for the overwhelming outpouring of support," RPCEA posted on Facebook. "We will come out of this stronger!" Unite Summit votes to authorize strike For two years, educators at the seven Bay Area Summit charter schools have been in negotiations for their first contract through their union, Unite Summit. They are fighting for a contract that addresses Summit's high teacher turnover and provides more supports for students, especially English learners. On March 31, 95 percent of the union's membership voted to authorize a strike. Their core demands include a two-year probationary period and increased support for English learners. Show your support at tinyurl.com/SupportUniteSummit. SACRAMENTO: Victory for students, educators After an eight-day strike, the Sacramento City Teachers Associ- ation (SCTA) and the classified employee union SEIU Local 1021 reached tentative agreements with Sacramento City Unified School District (SCUSD) on April 3. Thousands of educators, parents, students and labor and commu- nity allies had joined the picket lines demanding that SCUSD address a staffing crisis, among other issues — more than 10,000 students do not have a permanent teacher, every day. The new contracts, which were set to be ratified in early April, should help to ease the crisis. The agreements also contain salary increases, no takeaway on health care, and provisions for improved health and safety. "From start to finish, our members have been united in the belief that schools should be adequately staffed with a teacher in front of every classroom," says SCTA President David Fisher. "We stayed strong, and as a result we now have a contract that will help us attract and retain staff and provide our members with modest raises." For more details, see our coverage at cta.org/educator. 35 A P R I L / M AY 2 0 2 2 A