Michael Todd
Managing Editor
The Manhattan Beach Unified Teachers Association came to terms of agreement with the Manhattan Beach Unified School District for a contract ranging over four years, beginning with the 2017-18 school year.
The teachers felt that they were not being paid enough to live contently in the district that they teach in, according to English teacher Shawn Chen . They requested a raise in salary in early March, which was denied, prompting the teachers at Mira Costa to close their doors during snack and lunch in order to send a message to the district.
“This year alone I have spent 536 hours on planning, grading and answering emails up until today,” English teacher Stacy Cabrera said. “At the end of the year it will probably be around 700 hours of unpaid time.”
The contract details are as such: salary increases for the 2017-18 school year (1%), the 2018-19 school year (1.5%) and the 2019-20 school year (2.5%). The contract also features contingency language for a possible 1% increase in salary for the 2021 school year. The two sides also agreed on tentative calendars for the upcoming school years, which can be seen on the MBUSD website.
“I love what I do and I’m happy to put in the extra time but it is going to be hard to attract more teachers,” Cabrera said. “It will be hard to find anyone who is willing to put in these extra hours if the time is not being respected.”
Another complaint from the MBUTA was that class sizes were much too large for the teachers to create a stable learning environment. This problem forced the district to address it in the contract, with the district adding class size provisions that pays teachers a stipend if they have to teach classes with more than 31 students.
“Lately I have contemplated leaving because of the way we are now managed and treated,” English teacher Diana Sieker said. “Many MBUSD teachers were feeling devalued and invisible [before the new contract was agreed upon].”
The two sides came to an agreement to split the contract into two separate periods. The first contract period will cover the 2017-18 school year and the second period will cover the current school year up until the 2020-21 school year.
“I know the value of the amazing MBUSD teachers in this district and if the district continues to treat teachers this way, they won’t be able to attract any new staff.” Sieker said.
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