The wage hike is important, especially for paraeducator positions, which are some of the district’s lowest-paid and hardest-to-staff roles, according to the union.
But the district has indicated that its budget to increase compensation is tight.
SFUSD is currently in the second of a two-year budgeting process to curb a massive ongoing deficit. Last year, it slashed $114 million in annual expenses through hundreds of early retirement buyouts, the implementation of a strict staffing model in schools and administrative position reductions. This year, it will need to make another $48 million in cuts, which Superintendent Maria Su has indicated could be even more challenging.
In October, the district said it was committed to a budget process that benefits students while ensuring long-term financial stability.
“Right now, the state of California holds the authority to override any decision by the San Francisco Board of Education if it believes that decision could compromise the district’s financial stability,” the district said in a statement.
In October, SFUSD said that “any proposal for raises must be approved by the CDE and must be financially sustainable.”
The request for a wage hike comes just two years after SFUSD gave historic $9,000 raises to educators, along with a 5% salary increase the following year. Under that deal, classified educators also received a significant bump to a minimum wage of $30 an hour.
Curiel said that higher pay matters to members, but the two primary focuses of negotiations have not been about compensation. UESF is requesting an agreement that the district will cover health care for educators’ dependents and development of a workload model aimed at improving working conditions for special education teachers.
“We are 36 days away from a massive increase to our health care for the second or third year in a row for our dependents,” Curiel said Tuesday. She said that educators pay about $650 per pay cycle for coverage for one child. In January, coverage for two will be more than $1500, she said.
