Oakland educators say they have reached a “bargaining showdown” with the Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) as contract negotiations enter their second year.
The Oakland Education Association (OEA), along with parent, labor and student supporters, held a news conference last Friday at the end of the first day of state-assisted mediation, a process designed to kick-start the negotiating process.
Mediation is the second-to-last step before a potential district-wide strike, according to the union. Oakland teachers have been working without a contract since July 1, 2017.
“The school board has voted again and again to strip resources from our students in order to support a budget bloated with central office administrators and private vendors,” said Oakland Education Association (OEA) President Keith Brown, a Bret Harte Middle School teacher.