District, Union OK Pay Hike for 1st-Year Teachers

The Los Angeles Unified School District and the teachers union Monday announced an agreement that would raise beginning teachers’ salaries to $37,000.

The increase would make first-year, fully credentialed Los Angeles teachers with bachelor’s degrees the highest-paid in Los Angeles County.

The agreement is not part of the broader contract negotiations between the district and United Teachers-Los Angeles, which are expected to begin sometime next month.

Under the agreement, the minimum salary for eligible teachers would increase from $32,569 to $37,000 for the 1999-2000 school year. The raise would be retroactive to July 1, 1999, and would affect about 3,500 employees.

District officials said they would expect the increases to assist in recruiting credentialed teachers and in retaining current teachers. They also would provide an incentive for teachers with emergency credentials to continue their education and professional development.

The district’s chief operating officer, Howard Miller, said, “We are proud to have made such significant early progress in attempting to attract the best possible starting teachers we can find. This is a direct benefit to the children of Los Angeles.”

Union President Day Higuchi was unavailable for comment. But in a video message to be released among union members Wednesday, Higuchi credited the increase to thousands of teachers who gathered at district headquarters on March 28 to call for meaningful pay raises.

“We’re reaping the first fruit,” Higuchi said. “The union has won a significant pay raise for 3,500 colleagues.”

“But this is a first step,” he added. “We have a long way to go.”

A union official said the accord bodes well for coming labor contract talks.

About two weeks ago, the Los Angeles Board of Education approved a labor contract offer of a 6% raise for teachers, with merit pay for instructors who improve their students’ performance on the annual Stanford 9 test.

The proposal would for the first time link teachers’ pay to students’ test scores. It offers far less than the 21% raise sought by the teachers union and asks teachers to give up extra pay for bilingual credentials and the power to decide what classes they want to teach.

The current three-year contracts with all 10 district bargaining units expire June 30, one day before interim Supt. Ramon C. Cortines is scheduled to be replaced by a permanent superintendent who has not yet been named.

The union wants a 6% raise retroactive to last July 1 and a 15% raise to take effect this July 1. It also seeks a cut in the number of steps to top salaries and equal benefits for retirees. To improve working conditions, the union also is asking for a cap on class size in all grades and subjects, a uniform discipline code, and the right to file grievances over school safety and cleanliness.