LAUSD workers vote to authorize strike as many seek higher pay, more support staff

LOS ANGELES (KABC) — Thousands of Los Angeles Unified School District workers voted to authorize a strike Saturday as they continue to seek higher pay and more support staff.

SEIU Local 99 said members submitted votes online from Jan. 23 – Feb 10, with 96% voting in support of a strike. Dates for the strike have not been set, but the vote allows workers on SEIU Local 99’s bargaining team to call for a strike if necessary.

If a strike is called, it would impact around 30,000 LAUSD workers.

Members of SEIU Local 99 have been negotiating with LAUSD since April 2022, demanding “equitable wage increases, more full-time work, respectful treatment, and increased staffing levels for improved student services.”

According to SEIU Local 99 President Conrado Guerrero, several proposals have been rejected by LAUSD and negotiations reached an impasse in December.

“The minimum wages that we’re getting, not all full-time hours, those things are starting to boil up with the members and they’re getting tired of it,” he said. “They’re just ready to move on and do what we have to to get what we deserve.”

In response, a Los Angeles Unified spokesperson issued the following statement: “Los Angeles Unified is committed to fair and equitable negotiations that offset the pressures of inflation for all employees who serve our students and schools. We are hopeful that we will reach an agreement at the negotiating table that is beneficial to our dedicated workforce and avoids disrupting the significant improvements we are making in instruction and social emotional support for students, especially in the aftermath of the pandemic.”

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this report incorrectly reported LAUSD teachers were involved in the authorization.