What’s standing in the way of our kids going to school Thursday?
The teachers union announced yesterday that they will strike this Thursday, 5/4 if they are not able to reach an agreement with OUSD by then. What’s standing in the way of our kids going to school Thursday?
We may all be thinking of compensation – and we agree teachers deserve to be paid well. But, as you can see in this graphic, the District’s proposal includes significant raises: Every Oakland teacher would receive a salary increase of at least 13%, and as much as 22%.
So, what’s really standing in the way? Turns out the goalposts have moved.
We’ve learned that the looming strike on Thursday is over a common goods list, which includes everything from handling climate change to wiping out injustice before our kids can be in school. We are not here to debate the common goods list, although we want to share it for your review, and inform you that nowhere on this list did we read anything about a commitment to increasing reading and math proficiency for our students so they have access to college or a life they choose vs. a life that chooses them.
Unfortunately, the “common goods” list is a tactic we’re all too familiar with. Remember during the pandemic when the teachers union demanded a near elimination of coronavirus cases before schools could reopen? Many families sent a loud and clear message that this was unacceptable — that perfection couldn’t be required for our kids to be in school. Now, as the teachers union prepares for a potential strike on Thursday, we must bring that same energy to making sure ALL of our students are learning in our last few weeks of school.
Strike or no strike, this too shall pass. And when it does, our kids still won’t be reading and doing math on grade level. Who will step up and bring the same energy to that crisis? REACH will. Better yet, we will continue to be on the frontlines building solutions like our Liberator Model — recruiting parents and caregivers across our city to become paid tutors in school, collectively addressing our literacy crisis. What will you be doing?
