Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/1530930
Sac City TA members rallied to save early childhood educators' jobs. things to light during that process, but it still took the legal action through PERB that got it reversed," Milevsky says. " We were able to get 10 layoffs rescinded through organizing and fighting with the district, but that didn't help everyone who got laid off. So, we had to go to PERB." Milevsky says the former SCUSD superintendent made a deal to cut the child development educators before any information went to the school board and without bargaining with SCTA. e PERB complaint was part of a multi-pronged attack to force the district to do the right thing. Milevsky says it's rewarding to finally get the issue settled and right the long-standing wrong. "Fifty thousand dollars is a good chunk of money," she says. "Some members entered very rough times getting laid off. We were and still are the highest-paid child development depart- ment in the area so even if they got another job, it was less pay — so this really helps." is settlement is another in a string of historic victories by SCTA members, including a clean sweep of their supported school board candidates in the November election. Milevsky credits deep organizing and a membership that stepped up to work together to overcome obstacles and persist through disappointment to win for each other, their students and the Sacramento community. "Every victory was a group effort and took a lot of involvement and empowering of our members," she says. "We won an eight- day strike, but we still had the same lame superintendent for another year. It's a marathon with a lot of hills." Ending a Culture of Union-Busting: Clovis educators continue fight "No matter what happens, we have laid a foundation of change in this district," says Amy Kilburn, president of Association of Clovis Educators (ACE). "It is now up to our colleagues and fellow educators to figure out what they want to do with this path of change." e ongoing struggle by Clovis educators against a half-cen- tury of union-busting culture got a huge boost in June 2024 when PERB ruled that Clovis Unified School District's (CUSD) Faculty Senate was an illegal employer-supported organization (under the guise of a legitimate venue for educator concerns) and ordered that it be disestablished. e agency further acknowl- edged that the district had been interfering with the ongoing ACE unionization campaign for the district's more than 2,000 classroom teachers and ordered all union-busting to cease. The ruling shows what ACE organizers have been saying during their historic organizing campaign: Clovis Unified has been breaking the law for a long time to keep educators from forming a union, creating a culture that was openly hostile to educators seeking to unite their voices on behalf of each other and their students. 26 cta.org Feature Pro Tips for Organizing Around PERB Complaints " Never apologize for wanting to improve teaching and learning conditions in your district and never be made to feel bad about that." — Kristin Heimerdinger, Association of Clovis Educators " Always be authentic and be willing to say 'I don't know, let me get back to you on that. What do you think about it?' Invite others to the conversation. If you've set this goal for your membership and you think it will benefit your students and members, then normalize it to make it work." — Association of Clovis Educators President Amy Kilburn " The more information that your members see, the better. Having our members involved and seeing firsthand how the employer acts really galvanizes unity." — Sacramento City Teachers Association President Nikki Milevsky " Talk to as many people as you can, members and community. You never know when a conversation is going to spark something in anyone. This is especially crucial in inspiring new leaders in the association." — Edgar Díaz, Temecula Valey Educators Association " Commit to transparent communication. My members always know exactly what they 're fighting for. We had a very clear plan. Always be organizing — be transparent and trust your leadership team as much as your membership." — Rocklin Professional Teachers Association President Travis Mougeotte