United Teachers Los Angeles and the Los Angeles Unified School District reached a tentative contract agreement, the teachers union announced Tuesday morning. The UTLA board recommended its members vote to approve the tentative agreement. A new three-year contract from July 1 through June 30, 2025, includes a 21-percent salary increase for all UTLA members. "I'm excited and exhausted," said Gina Gray, a high school English teacher within LAUSD. She was also a member of the expanded bargaining team that reached an agreement at around 6 a.m. Tuesday morning. "We say it's the ground, not the ceiling. So we laid the groundwork to build upon for our next contract." The contract also includes an overall class size reduction by two students, and increased support for the Black Student Achievement Program and Community Schools, the UTLA said in a news release Tuesday. The agreement comes nearly a month after 30,000 members of Service Employees International Union Local 99 went on a three-day strike in March. "This contract recognizes the essential work of those who work hard to ensure students can learn in a clean, safe, and supportive environment," said Max Arias, the executive director of SEIU Local 99. "It is a major step forward with significant improvements to wages, work hours, and benefits for dedicated education workers who have been left behind for far too long. It will also lead to long-term benefits for student services as improved jobs will allow the district to recruit and retain more workers to help feed students, transport them to school, support them in the classroom, and keep school clean."
The agreement comes after a three-day strike in March by LAUSD support staff represented by SEIU Local 99 brought improvements to bus drivers, teachers' aides, custodians and others. UTLA members struck in solidarity with SEIU members.
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