Sacramento educators will walk off the job and onto picket lines Thursday, April 11, for a one-day strike to force Sacramento City Unified School District (SCUSD) to honor their contract, obey the law and stop making illegal proposals that hurt students, teachers and the community.

The strike will occur a mere 16 months after Sacramento City Teachers Association (SCTA) and the district reached a historic contract agreement that prioritized students and their learning conditions. Since that time, SCUSD Superintendent Jorge Aguilar and the Sac City school board have backtracked on the agreement and engaged in at least 30 unfair labor practices, giving SCTA no choice but to take direct action. SCTA is demanding that Aguilar and school board members keep their promises to students by honoring the contract and providing lower class sizes and more student supports, instead of hiring more administrators.

Unless the district suddenly decides to live up to its agreement, Sac City will be the first #RedForEd-era strike in the U.S. over unfair labor practices and a school district reneging on a contract. SCTA says they have been forced to this point by SCUSD’s continued unlawful actions, including:

• Refusing to honor the collective bargaining agreement approved by both sides in December 2017, which included class-size reductions and increased numbers of school nurses and psychologists, violating the contract;
• Refusing to meet at reasonable times and places with representatives the educators have elected to have represent them, and attempting to dictate who the teachers have represent them at the bargaining table;
• Making unilateral and unlawful changes to the wages and working conditions of teachers without bargaining;
• Failing to send district representatives to the bargaining table who have the authority to negotiate on behalf of the district, rendering bargaining meaningless.

SCTA also filed a lawsuit against SCUSD for violating the state’s open meeting laws while considering and ultimately voting to terminate more than 150 educators.

SCTA President David Fisher and Vice President Nikki Milevsky said as parents of students in the district, they will be keeping their children home on Thursday in support of striking educators and because of their concerns that “no real learning will take place” at school that day.

“One valuable life lesson students should learn is that when you make promises, you keep them,” said Fisher and Milevsky in a joint statement. “And that lesson will best be learned with teachers on the picket line. That’s where we will be with our own children on Thursday, April 11.”

Following picketing at school sites starting before dawn, Sacramento educators, parents and supporters will converge at noon for a Kids First Rally at the Serna Center, 5735 47^th Ave.

If you can’t make it to the rally, Sac City educators can still use your support. Sign this online petition to let SCTA know you’ve got their back in this fight (#SCTAGotYourBack) and help spread the word about these courageous Sacramento educators and a school board that refuses to honor its commitment to the community.

Stay current with the situation as it evolves by visiting the SCTA website, their Facebook Page and following on Twitter.#