UTLA and SEIU 99 Reach TA on Calendar and Pending UPCs

The ratification vote will be held online on Tuesday, June 6 (starting at 8 AM) through Thursday, June 8, (until 11:45 PM). All eligible members will be sent a link to vote on Tuesday morning at 8 AM to your non-LAUSD email address.

FULL TENTATIVE AGREEMENT

The Calendar and the Unfair Practice Charges

UTLA and SEIU Local 99 both have Unfair Practice Charges filed against LAUSD with the Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) relating to their unilateral implementation of school calendars for the next three years that shorten winter break, something that is a mandatory subject of bargaining. SEIU 99 also has multiple additional charges of retaliation and intimidation related to their contract campaign and strike.

LAUSD has also filed charges against both SEIU 99 and UTLA, claiming that the SEIU 99 UPC Strike, and UTLA’s solidarity strike, were not actually in protest of unfair labor practices alleged against LAUSD and were therefore unlawful and not protected.

While UTLA and SEIU 99 remain confident we would prevail in PERB hearings on all of the charges, it is in the interest of both UTLA and SEIU 99 members to try to reach an agreement on all of the issues within this school year — especially since a victory at PERB would have only resulted in LAUSD being ordered to negotiate, by which point the 2023-2024 school year would have already started.

The state penalty for LAUSD closing the schools during the SEIU/UTLA Solidarity Strike

The State of California requires that schools provide 180 instructional days. School districts face a financial penalty if they fall below 180 instructional days and do not make them up at a two days to one-day ratio within the following two school years.

Alberto Carvalho closed the schools during the 3-day strike this March. As a result, LAUSD either has to make up 6 instructional days over the next 2 years or face a funding penalty in excess of $100 million.

Of course, this is LAUSD’s problem to solve. They could just pay the penalty, even though it is significant. However, LAUSD proposed resolving the make-up days as part of the overall settlement of the calendar and UPC issues, which is not unreasonable.

Tentative Agreement

UTLA, SEIU 99, and LAUSD have reached a tentative agreement on the Calendar, the UPC’s, and the state penalty days for review and a ratification vote of UTLA and SEIU 99 members.

As currently structured, the LAUSD calendar has 182 required workdays (of which 180 are instructional and 2 are pupil free).

The Tentative Agreement is that:

For 2023-2024 and 2024-25:

The 3-week winter break will be maintained.
The required work days will be 183 rather than 182. All 183 days will be instructional days, meaning that the 2 pupil-free days will be turned into instructional days. The additional day added to the work year will be paid at the employee’s hourly rate.
Two optional onsite “Employee Preparation” days will be added. These days are voluntary for educators, who will be paid at their hourly rate of pay, and can be used to prepare for the opening and closing of each school year, without direction from their site administrators or supervisors.
Three optional “Winter Recess Academy” days will be added during the Winter Break for CSPP, UTK-12, and Adult Education. These days are similar to the accelerated days and will be voluntary for staff. Staff who choose to work those days will be compensated at their hourly rate.
SEIU 99 members who work on the Winter Recess Academy days shall also be allowed to cash out their corresponding vacation days, in accordance with procedures and timelines established by the District.
Both UTLA and SEIU 99 members working at EECs will have the option of working onsite two Saturdays (scheduled by a majority vote of staff at the site) of each school year for general preparation work, to be managed at the discretion of the employee, and paid at their regular rate of pay.
Bus drivers will have three “dry run” days prior to the first instructional, paid at their regular daily rate.

For 2025-2026, UTLA, SEIU, and LAUSD will negotiate a calendar, which will no longer require the additional workday.
LAUSD will not use strike participation for purposes of discipline or negative evaluations, and will not use strike participation as evidence of excessive absences or poor job performance. The district will also rescind or revise any already completed performance evaluations that used strike participation as grounds for a negative evaluation.
LAUSD will drop their unfair practice charges against UTLA and SEIU 99 alleging that the March 2023 strike was unlawful.
UTLA and SEIU 99 will drop our unfair practice charges against the district.

FULL TENTATIVE AGREEMENT

For more details about the proposed date changes, see below:

2023-2024

183 required workdays – 183 instructional days – 3 week winter break
Employee Preparation Day: Friday August 11 (Optional)
Employee Preparation Days for Bus Drivers: Wednesday, August 9, Thursday, August 10, and Friday August 11, 2023 so as to allow for up to 3 dry run days
First day of instruction: Monday, August 14
Last day of instruction: Tuesday, June 11
Employee Preparation Day: Wednesday, June 12 (Optional)
“Winter Recess Academy” days for CSPP, UTK-12, and Adult Education employees from Monday, December 18 through Wednesday, December 20 (Optional)
Two Employee Preparation Saturdays for EEC employees (Optional)

2024-2025

183 required workdays – 183 instructional days – 3 week winter break
Optional Employee Preparation Day: Friday, August 9 (Optional)
Employee Preparation Days for Bus Drivers: Wednesday, August 7, Thursday, August 8, and Friday August 9, 2024, allowing up to 3 dry run days.
First day of instruction: Monday, August 12
Last day of instruction: Tuesday, June 10
Employee Preparation Day: Wednesday, June 11 (Optional)
“Winter Recess Academy” days for CSPP, UTK-12, and Adult Education from Monday December 16 through Wednesday, December 18 (Optional)
Two Employee Preparation Saturdays for EEC employees (Optional)