SAN FRANCISCO – The San Francisco Unified School District and the union representing more than 1,000 school employees has reached a tentative labor agreement to avert a strike. SFUSD announced Wednesday that Service Employees International Union Local 1021 has agreed to a deal that includes pay increases dating back to last year and a one-time stipend of $1,500 per employee. "We're pleased to reach a tentative agreement with our labor partners," Superintendent Matt Wayne said in a statement. "Service workers are essential to making our schools work for kids, and this agreement reflects our collective commitment to valuing the integral roles they hold in our school communities." As part of the agreement, workers would receive a 6% salary increase retroactive to the 2022-23 school year and a 10% salary increase for the 2023-24 school year. Salaries for the upcoming 2024-25 school year would be subject to future negotiations, the district said. If ratified by workers and finalized by the school board, the new contract with SEIU would expire on June 30, 2025.
The tentative agreement with SEIU comes as the district continues negotiations with the United Educators of San Francisco, which represents teachers. Last week, 97% of members voted to give union leadership approval to call a strike vote if necessary . Negotiations took place between the district and UESF on Monday, with an additional meeting scheduled later this week. "After many hours working on a response, the District made it clear that while they believed we were close, they needed more time to finalize their counters. We did not reach a deal, but we pushed for another date this week, and they agreed to meet with us on Thursday," the union said in an update on Tuesday. The teachers' contract expired at the end of June. Additional steps would be needed before a teacher's strike would take place, including an additional vote.
Tim Fang is a digital producer at CBS Bay Area. A Bay Area native, Tim has been a part of the CBS Bay Area newsroom for two decades and joined the digital staff in 2006.
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