Teachers Get Lessons in Peaceful Picketing as Mediation Goes On

Carry a sign. Walk in single file. Be vocal, but avoid profanity. Stay off school grounds. Bring a camera and take pictures of anyone crossing the line. Do not be provoked by those who insult you. Do not block entries.

These were but a few of the lesson points presented Friday to Los Angeles teachers union leaders as planning for a threatened Feb. 23 strike went into high gear, even as mediation talks continue.

Hundreds of teachers who would be picket line captains during a strike assembled to hear union officials and Los Angeles police officers explain “Detailed Picket Procedures” at one in a series of pre-strike organizational meetings the union will be holding over the next several days if a settlement is not reached.

“This is going to be an uncompromising, unforgettable, unforgiving strike,” Carl Joseph, the union’s security coordinator, told the crowd, stressing that picket line control will be a key to averting trouble or violence.

“I am very cognizant of the feelings in our community today, not about teachers, but about what is going on in general,” United Teachers-Los Angeles President Helen Bernstein told those gathered at the Hamilton High School auditorium on the Westside, referring to a tense atmosphere in the city in the wake of last year’s riots and the federal civil rights trial of the four officers accused in the Rodney G. King beating case.

Los Angeles police officers told teachers that 20 specially trained labor relations officers will be assigned specifically to settle picket-line disputes. The picket captains were given direct phone lines to police in the event of trouble.

The Police Department will activate its Emergency Operations Center and deploy 1,000 additional patrol officers on the street. Los Angeles school district police will patrol on campuses.

The Police Department has held similar strike preparation meetings with district officials. The union and the district have also met with the Sheriff’s Department.

Teachers at Friday’s meeting expressed their support of Bernstein with a standing ovation, but said they are dreading the prospect of a strike. Some are fearful that picket lines will be volatile because of teachers’ deep anger and frustration over working conditions.

The strike meeting came as union and district officials were preparing to meet this morning with Assembly Speaker Willie Brown, who is mediating the dispute and is viewed as their last hope for averting a strike.

Teacher John Morrison said he wants Brown and the negotiators to “settle this and bring us back something that is acceptable.”

The strike threat was prompted by a 12% teacher pay cut and the district’s opposition to an array of union demands to increase teacher decision-making authority at schools. The union has also sought a guarantee that salaries not be cut again next year. The school board cut pay for all district employees to help bridge a $400-million deficit.

Bernstein said Friday that she will have union members vote on any proposal forged through Brown.