Karli Wallace, Emilee Ray
Executive Theme Editor, Theme Editor
Manhattan Beach Unified Teacher’s Association came to a decision on Feb 25 for MCHS teachers to close their classrooms to students at snack, lunch and after school as a part of a district-wide slowdown.
Teachers are choosing to participate in the slowdown due to the Manhattan Beach Unified School District’s negotiation over an expired two-year master contract and for a salary increase for next year’s contract, MBUTA President and English teacher Shawn Chen said. These negotiation disputes are one part of a history of previous incidents, like the ones from 2011 to present day.
“We have been waiting two years for this contract, and the time has arrived to make it clear that we have to set some boundaries,” Chen said. “I would like to have this contract settled by June so that we can have an updated teacher evaluation system, a three-year contract so that we can move on to something more productive.”
2011-12
MBUTA and MBUSD met six times in the 2011-12 school year to discuss salary raises. MBUSD proposed no salary raise for three years and a 2% bonus which was rejected by the MBUTA. The teachers ultimately refrained from writing letters of recommendation, boycotted participation in Scholar Quiz and closed their doors during lunch.
“I understand that teachers want a salary raise, but I wish the students were not affected by that desire,” senior Kyle Sillman said. “I feel like we are pawns in the conflict between MBUSD and MBUTA, which is very unfortunate for students because with the rooms being closed, we don’t get the extra help that we need.”
2013-14
In another conflict with MBUTA, MBUSD publicly claimed on April 14, 2014 that they mistakenly charged $1,033,000 to an incorrect fund. This provoked MBUTA and community members to address their concern at a Board meeting on April 25 of that same year. The Public Employment Relations Board charged MBUSD on Sept. 3, 2014 of “failing and refusing to meet and negotiate in good faith” with MBUTA by withholding documents that they’d requested two years earlier. Included in these requested documents was information regarding the million dollar budget discrepancy.
“I, as a parent, and all the teachers in this district have lost trust,” MBUSD parent Kim Lesserman said at the April 25, 2014 board meeting, adressing MBUSD Superintendent Mike Matthews. “Therefore, I don’t think you are going to be effective at your job, and I would like to go on record to ask for your resignation for the good of our district.”
2015
The next year in December of 2015, MBUTA filed a complaint against MBUSD because of their decision to not re-elect former probationary French teacher Timothy Hirsh. The complaint cited the Educational Employment Relations Act, which states that it is unlawful to threaten or carry out appraisals or discriminates, or to otherwise interfere with or restrain employees because of their exercise of employee rights.
“Dr. Matthews has requested to honor the process and not be interviewed at this time as the district is still in negotiations with MBUTA,” Superintendent’s Assistant Heather Hoffman said in an email from Mar.1, 2019.
Present day
Currently, according to an MBUTA negotiations bulletin released to the union on March 1, 2019, the union suggested an opening proposal of a 9% increase for the 2017-18, 2018-19 and 2019-20 school years in correlation to the average cost of living adjustment. MBUSD at first did not propose an offer, then suggested a 1% increase and then finally a 2% increase on Feb 27.
“There are a series of increasingly unpleasant options that we may have to enact to make it clear that the things that we do for free are not truly free,” Chen said. “If this contract is lingering until next October, the teachers and the Union will have already started vying for a strike. I’m sure of it.”
Leave a Reply