Teachers Stage Sickout; Board Seeks Injunction

More than half the teachers at Leuzinger High School in Lawndale called in sick Monday, leaving the school’s 2,500 students without regular classes.

The organized sickout was the third work stoppage in the Centinela Valley School District in four months, officials said.

About 55 of the school’s 90 certified teachers were absent and Supt. Joseph Carrillosaid only eight substitute teachers could come in on such late notice. Administrators and non-striking teachers conducted classes in the gymnasium and auditorium to ensure that all students were supervised, Carrillo said.

“Nothing warrants this kind of action,” Carrillo said. “It’s not good for the students. It sends out a really bad message.”

Carrillo said administrators were baffled by the sick-in since teachers were working under an official contract and a 2% raise already had been approved and will be finalized at a board meeting Thursday. He said the board plans to seek an injunction against the teachers to prevent another occurrence.

The sick-in was not a union-sanctioned event, said Lauren Sanders, executive director of the South Bay United Teachers Assn., which represents the Leuzinger teachers. He said Leuzinger teachers are unhappy with work conditions, the increased size of classes and the 2% raise that was supposed to begin in December. Sanders said teachers do not have an official contract.