UTLA & SEIU Local 99 – A Bond of Unity and Power

Today was the third and final day of our Solidarity Strike with SEIU Local 99’s three-day Unfair Practice Strike. This strike was about respect for education workers. Carvalho and the district think they can ignore and belittle the people who are in schools every day teaching, nourishing, and caring for LAUSD students.

But SEIU Local 99 and UTLA education workers together are a FORCE. This week, we took to the streets to make it loud and clear that we WILL NOT stand for Carvalho and the district’s disrespect. We commanded the attention of local and national media and won over public support.

This morning we were out on the picket lines for the third day in a row and finished at LA State Historic Park for a rally to celebrate the power we built together. We filled the park with music, dancing, and an overwhelming sense of unity. 

After this week, LAUSD will never be the same. UTLA educators and SEIU 99 education workers built a new bond and fundamentally shifted the power between the district and LAUSD education workers.

Tomorrow, we return to work with our SEIU Local 99 union siblings with a sense of pride and accomplishment

The story of our solidarity dominated local media and made national news. 

• I’m a History Teacher at LAUSD, and This is Why I’m Striking (L.A. Taco)
• School workers in the nation’s second-largest district go on strike, shutting down schools. Here’s what they want (CNN)
• Column: Another LAUSD strike: It’s hell on families, but workers had no choice(L.A. Times)
• 3-day strike concludes with no deal, but discussions continue (L.A. Daily News)
• L.A. Schools Strike Day 2: Economic Inequality is Backdrop of Walkout (New York Times)
• “If They Strike, We Won’t Cross the Picket Line”: LA Teachers And Service Workers Unite (In These Times)
• LAUSD’s $4.9 Billion Question (Capital and Main)

TOMORROW: Friday March 24, schools reopen and we return to work.