SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Just as parents thought life might get back to normal for students after two years of the coronavirus pandemic, a teachers strike has cast their kids back out of the classroom.
The Sacramento City Unified School District (SCUSD) and labor unions remain at odds over staffing, better pay, training and health benefits. Negotiations fell through on Wednesday, and on Thursday, they never happened.
The Sacramento City Teachers Association (SCTA) were on the picket line Thursday, saying its been two years of being over-worked, under-staffed, over-stressed and under-paid.
"My school, all of the teachers are taking extra classes, we take everybody else’s classes on our prep just to make it work so the kids are in a classroom," teacher Susan McKellar told ABC10.
McKellar said the situation has reached this point due to the coronavirus pandemic and its many impacts. Now, with COVID cases waning, long-boiling labor issues could usher in a wave of teacher strikes around the country.
"If we don't find a way to kind of work together to figure this out, it'll just get worse," said Pedro Noguera, Dean of the University of Southern California Rossier School of Education.
Noguera has been studying these issues for the past 30 years. He says the situation that people are seeing unfold now is the combination of wages, working conditions and burnout from teachers and that pandemic conditions brewed discontent.
Outside of Sacramento, teacher strikes are being seen in places like Minneapolis. After three weeks, those public schools are still without a deal.
Back in Sacramento, SCUSD told parents to expect a third day of closures ahead of an anticipated strike on Friday.
"I’ve seen more and more of them say, 'I don’t want to be in this profession anymore. I don’t want to stay here,'" McKellar said.
Noguera told ABC10 that one of his concerns is that California could see more strikes happening in communities statewide as issues reach their boiling points.
"I'd like to hear from the State Superintendent. I'd like to hear from the governor. What are they going to do to help address a crisis like this?" he said.
The unions and school district didn't meet Thursday. It remains unclear if they'll meet Friday as well.
Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg helped broker a deal between the unions and district a few years back. A spokesperson for his office said he'd like to be helpful in any way he can as the issues continue.
"Kids have missed enough school. Their education and mental health are at stake. They will continue to suffer if the adults continue to fight amongst themselves," Steinberg said in a statement to ABC10, in part.
"Unless and until the leaders who possess real power commit to some form of working together, nothing will change, and our city’s children will bear the brunt," he said.
For the full statement from Mayor Steinberg, view below.
“For the sake of kids, parents, teachers, and all Sac City workers, I implore the parties to continue to do everything possible to end this strike immediately.
Kids have missed enough school. Their education and mental health are at stake. They will continue to suffer if the adults continue to fight amongst themselves.
Unless and until the leaders who possess real power commit to some form of working together, nothing will change, and our city’s children will bear the brunt.
Many will say, it’s impossible for the two sides to come to a resolution. The distrust and dislike is too deep.
Friends don’t need to make peace. Adversaries must.
We are seeing real war on our television screens every night. So many are sacrificing for the basic freedoms we enjoy every day.
Let’s all have perspective and do more to rise above the divisions in our own community.
Every moment of great tension is also a moment of possible breakthroughs. For our kids, may this be that moment.”
Hear more from SCUSD:
Hear more from SCTA:
