Teachers Union Seeks Restraining Order to Prevent Salary Cuts by L.A. District

The Los Angeles teachers union will go to court today seeking to prevent the school district from imposing a salary cut on its members Friday, union officials said.

Attorneys for United Teachers-Los Angeles will ask a civil court judge to issue a temporary restraining order against the district, arguing that under case law teachers have the right to receive their full salary for the rest of the fiscal year, which ends June 30.

As negotiations aimed at averting a crippling teacher strike made little progress Wednesday, UTLA President Helen Bernstein said that she owes it to her membership “to use every legal means to stop a pay cut that we feel is unfair.”

Unions attorneys, however, acknowledged that the temporary order may be difficult to win if the judge decides that the magnitude of the district’s financial crisis justifies the pay cut.

UTLA members have authorized their leaders to call a strike if ongoing talks fail.

In preparation for a strike, the district has drafted a detailed list of instructions that will be sent to principals this week. The district plans to assign substitutes to classes, increase school police staffing and cancel all extracurricular activities and after-school events.

As part of negotiations, the union has proposed measures to soften a cumulative 12% pay reduction and is demanding no future decreases--which the district so far will not guarantee. The school board has refused to make such an assurance because of uncertainties over state funding next year.

The district’s chief negotiator, Dick Fisher, said district officials believe they are in “full compliance with their collective bargaining unit, which permits the district to make salary changes.”

In another maneuver, a state employment board, acting on behalf of the UTLA, has issued a complaint of unfair labor practices against the school district.

The complaint charges that the salary cuts should not have been imposed during contract negotiations. Also, the union claims that the school district has failed to turn over “relevant information” needed to move forward with negotiations.

The complaint, filed with the Public Employment Relations Board, has been been forwarded to an administrative law judge for a hearing. No date has been set.

Ultimately, retirement board officials will decide if the district has violated state labor codes or if the case should be dismissed. A retirement board attorney said the action was “not unusual” in labor negotiations. The school board could be found liable for some back pay, but the case can be appealed through state courts.

The school board on Oct. 2 approved salary reductions ranging from 6.5% to 11.5% on the vast majority of the district’s employees to balance a $400-million shortfall this fiscal year and avoid bankruptcy. The cuts come on top of a 3% pay reduction last year.

School board President Leticia Quezada said she is still hopeful an agreement can be reached by Friday when teachers will stage protest actions at schools.