Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/912628
Bargaining Roundup Details of these stories at cta.org/bargainingupdates Calaveras: Strike Settled After a four-day strike in October, Calaveras Unified Educators Association (CUEA) members reached agreement with Calaveras Unified School District. Teachers are pleased they achieved contract language that will help decrease class size and create safe schools, and made changes to the salary schedule that will help attract and retain qualified teachers. "Our students will greatly benefit from the class size reduction we've nego- tiated," says CUEA President Lorraine Angel. "Safer classrooms and smaller classes will give us more one-on-one attention for increased learning." The deal includes a restructured salary schedule specifically designed to attract new teachers to Calaveras. All told, teachers will see a 2 to 6 percent raise. Angel expressed gratitude to the Calaveras parents and community. "We saw how much this community values and supports its teachers. That means the world to us and strengthens our resolve to make Calaveras an even better school district as we move forward." Calaveras educators march arm in arm. Credit: Jim Schlotz Crossing the road. Credit: Cynthia Menzel 49 D E C E M B E R 2 017 / J A N U A R Y 2 018 CAVA: Charter Educators Authorize Strike California Virtual Educators United (CVEU), which represents 450 teach- ers at California Virtual Academies (CAVA), voted in November to autho- rize a strike after trying to negotiate their first contract with CAVA admin- istration for more than a year. CVEU has been working to address teacher and student turnover by raising CAVA's shock- ingly low salaries and ensuring a manageable student-teacher ratio that supports quality instruction and learning. CAVA contracts with national online, for-profit charter giant K12 Inc.; hires instructors at low pay to teach as many students as possible with low overhead; then funnels California taxpayer funding back to K12 investors and executives in Virginia to pay for management fees, technology and other services. "Our members are deeply dedi- cated to the over 10,000 students we serve," says CVEU president Brianna Carroll. "We are working to negotiate changes that will benefit our stu- dents and stop the high turnover that is enriching an out-of-state, for-profit company at the expense of better quality teaching and learning, and adequate resources for the kids best served by an online model." K12 and CAVA bitterly fought the unionization of CAVA teachers and their representation by CTA. In 2016, CAVA agreed to a $168.5 million set- tlement with the California attorney general over concerns related to business practices, student perfor- mance, and use of public funds. In October 2017, CAVA was required to pay back nearly $2 million in Com- mon Core funds to the California Department of Education based on ongoing problems with the reporting of attendance, teacher-pupil ratios and student progress. A 1st contract