Sacramento, CA - SCUSD is aware that the Sacramento City Teachers’ Association (SCTA) filed an Unfair Practice Charge with the Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) alleging bad faith bargaining and interference with SCTA’s rights.  The District denies the allegations made in the complaint and will respond to the charge.

Sac City Unified stands by our decision to close schools for instruction during the 8-day strike from March 23, 2022 through April 1, 2022.  The simultaneous strikes by members of SCTA and SEIU Local 1021, which included teachers, counselors, bus drivers, custodians, nutrition services personnel and other staff, left the District unable to properly staff schools and provide a safe learning environment for students.

Once the strike concluded and schools were back open, the District engaged in good faith efforts to reach agreement on how to recover the instructional time our students were denied during the strike. 

During negotiations, the District proposed limiting the use of personal leave by SCTA unit members to ensure our ability to properly plan and appropriately staff classrooms and schools during added instructional days.  We remain concerned about the ability to provide safe and productive learning environments at all school sites if days are added to the current academic calendar.

The District has passed a total of five proposals to SCTA, each one offering more concessions to SCTA than the last.  

• Initial proposals from the district passed to SCTA on April 20 and on April 25 contained provisions that would require all staff to attend work on the added days unless a leave had been pre-approved or for valid medical reasons.
• On May 4, the District passed a proposal to SCTA with a provision to provide more flexibility to employees so that no more than 20% of certificated staff at any single school site be granted approved leaves of absence during the extended period. 
• On Monday, May 9, the District made a fourth proposal to SCTA which increased that allowance for approved leaves of absence to 25%. 
• On Thursday, May 12, the District passed a new proposal to SCTA that would increase the percentage to 30%.
• The District’s most recent proposal also modified language regarding the District’s liability for tax and retirement consequences to address concerns raised by SCTA.

The District has rejected SCTA’s proposal that all employees who went on strike simply be paid by the District for the days that they did not work.

This filing by SCTA is particularly disappointing given that SCTA previously dismissed several pending grievances and unfair practice charges as part of the agreements reached to end the strike.

Sac City Unified remains committed to working with SCTA to achieve a student-centered plan for recovering the valuable learning time students lost to the strike.