California Issues Complaint on L.A. Teachers’ Boycott

Los Angeles Unified School District teachers may be violating state law with a union-led boycott of such duties as playground supervision and parent conferences, attorneys for the state Public Employment Relations Board alleged in a complaint issued Wednesday.

The complaint, an outgrowth of a bitter contract dispute between the district and its teachers, was issued by attorneys for the state board after a preliminary investigation of charges filed by the district in October.

The core of the allegation is that the union engaged in an unfair labor practice by unilaterally withholding services before exhausting the negotiating procedures available under state law, said Christine A. Bologna, general counsel for the Public Employment Relations Board.

Bologna emphasized that the complaint represents an allegation, rather than a judgment against the teachers. The action is not expected to immediately affect contract negotiations or teachers’ activities, but it does pave the way for the district to pursue formal hearings and a legal judgment against the union.

Hoping to gain an advantage in the public relations battle surrounding the contract fight, district officials said the state board’s complaint represents an important victory.

“We obviously think this is a significant development because it’s the first recognition that the boycott activities . . . are inappropriate and constitute an unfair labor practice,” Associate Supt. Gabriel Cortina said.

But a spokesman for the United Teachers-Los Angeles said the union will not change its stand and noted it will be months, possibly more than a year, before the Employment Relations Board makes a final decision.

“It’s a minor decision,” said the union’s Don Schrack. “It will do nothing but reinforce teacher frustration.”

The teachers have filed their own unfair labor charges against the district, alleging that management has been improperly docking pay for thousands of teachers participating in the boycott.

The boycott began in October, after little progress was made in month of negotiations for a new labor contract. Several key issues are unresolved, including pay and playground supervision duties for teachers. Teachers are seeking a 12% first-year pay hike, while the district is offering 17% over three years.

The district this week advanced a new offer, which pledges pay hikes of up to 10% a year, contingent on the receipt of still-uncertain state revenues. Those funds would come from Proposition 98, the statewide school funding initiative passed by voters last month. But conflicts have arisen in Sacramento over how much new money will flow to the schools and what it can be used for.

Cortina said the district made the offer as a “demonstration of our good faith.”

But union officials quickly rejected the offer, citing the uncertainty of the new state funds.

“There is absolutely no guarantee of an increase,” Schrack said. “Not one penny.”

Last month, the five-member Public Employment Relations Board rejected a district request that it seek a court injunction halting the boycott activities, an action the teachers union pointed to as an important victory.

This week also marked the first time an independent state mediator participated in the negotiations.