Teachers Group Loses Bid to Stop Bilingual Bonuses
Members of United Teachers-Los Angeles, the union representing 33,000 teachers and other school professionals, defeated a measure that would require bilingual teachers to turn down $5,000-a-year bonuses from the school district, union President Wayne Johnson said Thursday.
An initiative by Learning English Advocates Drive, a statewide group started by Los Angeles teachers opposed to the district’s bilingual education program, was defeated by a 2-1 margin. The group had sought to block the bonuses, arguing they are unfair to teachers who speak only English.
The bonuses are part of the teachers’ contract signed last June. District officials say the bonuses will attract more bilingual teachers to classrooms in the 610,000-student district, which has 180,000 students who are learning English.
LEAD founder Sally Peterson said she will continue to fight the district’s bilingual teaching method by lobbying state legislators.
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