Teachers union in tentative deal with Los Angeles schools

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles Unified School District and union officials announced Tuesday that a tentative deal has been reached on a new contract that would give a significant pay raise to teachers, nurses, counselors and other educational staff in the nation’s second-largest school system.

The deal calls for the nearly 35,000 members of United Teachers Los Angeles to receive a 21% pay increase in increments of 3% or 4% retroactive to last July and through Jan. 1, 2025.

The pact, reached over 11 months of bargaining, also would enhance pay for substitute teachers, decrease class sizes by two students, create enforceable class size caps for special education, provide support for immigrant students and families, and increase mental health and counseling services.

“Smaller class sizes will give our kids the attention and care they require, and competitive salaries will ensure our schools can successfully hire, retain and develop successful teachers and educators to mold our young leaders of tomorrow,” UTLA President Cecily Myart-Cruz said in a statement.

District Superintendent Alberto M. Carvalho said the agreement “is a necessary step not only to make Los Angeles Unified the district of choice for families but also the district of choice for teachers and employees.”

Last month, the teachers union largely supported a three-day strike by a separate union representing the district’s bus drivers, cafeteria workers and other service workers.

The strike shut down the district, which quickly reached a deal with the Service Employees International Union, whose members ratified the pact this month.

A ratification vote by United Teachers Los Angeles will be held in the coming weeks. The union’s board recommends members vote yes on approving the tentative agreement.

Both contracts require approval by the district Board of Education.

The LA Unified School District has more than 500,000 students. It serves Los Angeles and all or part of 25 other cities and unincorporated county areas.