South Bay Union School District teachers won’t strike after all, after their union and the district broke through an impasse and approved a new contract following nearly two years of talks.
The board of trustees voted unanimously Thursday to approve the contract, after union members ratified it early last month.
The new two-year contract — retroactive to last July, and approved along with a reopener for the 2024-25 school year — guarantees all current teachers 2% raises effective July 1, 2025.
It also guarantees all members employed during the 2024-25 school year a 2% raise effective July 1, 2024, plus an off-schedule 2% one-time payment.
Vanessa Barrera, the union president, expressed gratitude for the community’s support and said the tentative agreement had gotten 97% support from members on Feb. 6.
“This is what happens when we refuse to back down,” she said. “Our collective power forced you to come to the table to ensure that you prioritize our students and our staff.”
Board members also thanked the community for coming out.
Trustee Jose Lopez Eguino acknowledged that the nearly two years it had taken to reach an agreement involved “a lot of emotions, a lot of pain,” but called the outcome “the best agreement that we can come to during these times.”
He said he would like to see community engagement throughout the year.
After bargaining talks toward a new contract had reached an impasse, the union voted in January to authorize a strike. By then, the parties had been in negotiations for 20 months.
South Bay isn’t the only San Diego County school district whose teachers recently voted to authorize a strike and then called it off.
San Diego Unified School District recently averted a one-day strike after reaching a tentative agreement with its teachers.