los angeles — Los Angeles schools averted a strike that would have affected nearly 400,000 students in Southern California School district The union representing support staff reached a tentative agreement early Tuesday.
Local 99 of the Service Employees International Union announced on social media that it won a tentative agreement with “significant gains” including raises and overtime. The district announced that an agreement in principle has been reached with SEIU Local 99 allowing schools to open on Tuesday and they will work to finalize the details of the tentative agreement.
The tentative deal also includes protections from subcontracting, a moratorium on IT layoffs and increased headcount, SEIU Local 99 said. SEIU Local 99 asked members to report to work as usual Tuesday and thanked its fellow unions and the Los Angeles community, saying “victory belongs to all of us.”
Teachers, principals and staff were prepared to walk out on strike if agreement could not be reached. Unions representing teachers and principals reached tentative contract agreements with the nation’s second-largest school district over the weekend.
The three unions, which represent about 70,000 workers across the Los Angeles Unified School District, have pledged to strike if none of the three unions reach a tentative agreement.
The three unions have never struck at the same time — officials have remained on duty during previous teacher strikes to help keep schools open. This was the case in 2023 when 99 local workers, joined by teachers, went on strike for three days. About 150 of the 1,000 schools in the region It remained open.