Fresno Teachers Association members vote to authorize strike
FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Thousands of teachers with the Fresno Teachers Association (FTA) have voted to authorize a strike after failed contract negotiations with the Fresno Unified School District.
This is the first time since 1978 that teachers within Fresno Unified will strike.
Officials with the Fresno Teachers Association say they will officially hit the picket lines on Wednesday, November 1.
"The message set for our educators is clear. We have a mandate, and we are willing to strike," said FTA President Manuel Bonilla.
92% of the eligible members of the teachers association cast their ballots.
Of those, a little more than 93% voted yes on a strike.
Bonilla said FTA wants to reimagine the school education system for over 74,000 Fresno Unified students.
"It's time for the Fresno Unified board to meet the moment, lead the district, and deliver a deal that values its educators and puts students and district on the path to a brighter future," said Bonilla.
For the last 18 months, Fresno Unified and FTA have been at the negotiation table trying to come to an agreement.
"We've put forward countless ideas across the table to Robert Nelson and his team of highly paid bureaucrats. They've ignored virtually all of them,"
District officials were not available for an interview after the announcement because they were still in talks with FTA leaders throughout the afternoon.
In a statement sent to Action News, Fresno Unified said teachers have already received nearly 33% in raises over the past several years, while inflation rose by just over 30%.
Now, another 19% increase is on the table for the next three-year contract.
The district says the contract presented on October 13 considered many of the ideas FTA has offered.
Officials also said on Monday that they had only seen one written response from the union during negotiations.
"Right now, our staff and our parents, they don't hear those informal conversations that are going on. They can only go off of the paper proposals that we put forward," said Chief Communication Officer, Nikki Henry.
As negotiations continue, the school district has been prepping for weeks and has approved 3 million dollars to help cover the costs of keeping schools open during a strike.
The district said it will meet its goal of over 2,500 substitute teachers by the end of this week.
They will fill teacher gaps in and out of the classroom, including sports events.
Class sizes are expected to grow with about five extra students per classroom.
Teachers plan to leave the classroom next Wednesday if a deal is not reached by then.
FTA was expected to give written notice of the strike to Fresno Unified, and parents will receive information on what's next for their students by Friday.
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