The union representing Los Angeles Unified teachers has rejected an updated contract offer from the district.
The proposal included a retroactive pay raise and a guaranteed additional increase for the current school year.
But, Alex Caputo-Pearl says the reason for the proposal’s rejection goes beyond pay.
“They have not responded to what we’ve brought up about getting more nurses, getting more counselors… expanding the curriculum. We’ve got proposals on making sure that music, and the arts and ethnic studies are a part of the curriculum. We’ve got standardized testing proposals, and we also have brought proposals to regulate the growth of charter schools. We got no responses on that list of items.”
Caputo-Pearl said the union’s members are dedicated to reaching an agreement because of the importance of what’s at stake.
“We are gonna keep on striving to get an agreement, short of a strike. But we know that when public education is sort of hanging in the balance… without enough nurses, counselors. When class size is in question, all these other things. We know that we’ve gotta fight for that and it’s not just a fight for educators. It’s a fight for students and families.”
Caputo-Pearl was a guest on McIntyre in the Morning.
By Christina Kelley, KABC News.