After ten months of bargaining, the two sides jointly declared a stalemate in October, which meant the California Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) assigned a neutral third-party mediator. But so far, it hasn\u2019t helped. Last Friday, PERB\u2019s \u201cfact-finding<\/a>\u201d representative conducted one last mediated effort with the two sides to try to broker a deal.\u00a0<\/p>\n Nothing came of the meeting. PERB now plans to release a public report by Feb. 4 with their findings. Once this report is public, the union can legally go on strike.\u00a0<\/p>\n District spokespeople declined to comment for this story and pointed The Frisc to bargaining updates<\/a> on the website and a flow chart<\/a> to explain negotiations. School board president Phil Kim also declined to comment.<\/p>\n Raise rates<\/p>\n \u201cWhile SFUSD deeply values its educators, the district is also grappling with a dire fiscal reality,\u201d the district\u2019s website says. Union reps are skeptical.<\/p>\n \u201cWe hear this every year,\u201d said Ryan Alias, a Balboa High School English teacher and part of the union\u2019s bargaining team.<\/p>\n The previous contract, which expired in June, gave UESF a $9,000 raise in 2023 and a 5 percent raise over the following two years. For the next two-year contract, UESF wants<\/a> an annual raise of 4.5 percent divide over two years for certificated<\/a> employees (teachers, nurses, counselors, and other roles that require a credential), and a 14 percent bump for classified<\/a> employees \u2014 clerks, technicians, and others who don\u2019t need a credential.\u00a0<\/p>\n The district\u2019s counteroffer<\/a> is a 2 percent bump for certificated and classified employees each year for the next three years. In exchange for the raise, the first round of which wouldn\u2019t meet this year\u2019s federal cost of living adjustment<\/a>, the district wants to cut paid leaves, prep periods for some teachers, and stipends for department heads. It also wants to expand class size limits. The union called the counteroffer insulting.<\/p>\n According to the district, the parties reached a tentative agreement<\/a> in October on a handful of smaller issues, but they haven\u2019t budged on pay or the union\u2019s other key demands.\u00a0<\/p>\n Under the state microscope<\/p>\n Because of the district\u2019s financial situation, the California Department of Education (CDE) has partial control of its monetary decisions. CDE won\u2019t lift oversight until SFUSD proves it has reached a certain level of stability, which the district hopes to do by March. Part of a longer-term plan<\/a> are proposed cuts<\/a> starting next school year that would save the district $8.6 million. They include assistant principals, mental health workers, and security guards. Principals have until the end of January to make a case for other options.\u00a0<\/p>\n Meanwhile, CDE can veto any financial decision it deems harmful to the district\u2019s budget \u2014 including pay raises \u2014 even if the consequences are painful. In 2024, the state demanded a hiring freeze<\/a> which \u201cabsolutely impacted our schools, and was very frustrating for families,\u201d said Meredith Dodson, executive director of San Francisco Parents Coalition.\u00a0<\/p>\n CDE advisor Elliott Duchon, who has been working with SFUSD since 2021, did not answer requests for comment.\u00a0<\/p>\n Union president Curiel questioned how state oversight has helped: \u201cThe state is also responsible for allowing this to occur year over year. This is not the first time that we heard it\u2019s a crisis.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n The district is also proposing an 8-percent reserve fund<\/a> of around $111 million<\/a> for \u201ceconomic uncertainty,\u201d which did not sit well with the union and its backers. \u201cWe know the district is sitting on a surplus, a rainy day fund,\u201d said Alias. \u201cIt\u2019s raining now.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t Alias said the union\u2019s demands fall well under this surplus amount, but the union hasn\u2019t made those figures public.\u00a0<\/p>\n According to Chris Mount-Benites, deputy superintendent of business operations, this reserve fund is intended to cover two months of operations in case of emergency \u2014 for example, should the state face a crisis and delay the money it gives the district. Most districts keep a reserve roughly twice what SFUSD is proposing, he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Healthcare and special ed<\/p>\n Millions of Americans have to tighten their belts with Affordable Care Act subsidies expiring this month<\/a>. Educators in San Francisco are asking for fully funded dependent healthcare. Their last contract covered 65 percent for one dependent and 53 percent for two dependents.\u00a0<\/p>\n For a family with two kids, healthcare premiums are roughly $1,200 every month<\/a> and will soon increase to roughly $1,500.\u00a0<\/p>\n Employers don\u2019t typically cover 100 percent of family healthcare premiums, according to a 2025 KFF survey<\/a> of California benefits. But there\u2019s precedent in education. Eight unions last month reached a tentative agreement<\/a> with the LA Unified School District for fully funded dependent healthcare<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are looking to neighbors like Oakland and San Mateo who already have it, as well as Richmond \u2026 as inspiration,\u201d California Teachers Association spokesperson Jessica Beard told The Frisc via email. After Richmond teachers struck for four days last month, West Contra Costa Unified School District agreed to pay<\/a> 100 percent by 2028.\u00a0<\/p>\n SFUSD said last week<\/a> that it proposed a way to fully fund family benefits as part of a broader package that UESF rejected.\u00a0<\/p>\n UESF is also asking for an overhaul of special educator workloads<\/a>. Right now, the district creates schedules based on the number of cases, not the hours each kid needs. The union says this is a problem because some kids need more time and resources than others, and educators are burning out.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u2018They always come to me\u2019<\/p>\n It\u2019s also contributing to a staffing shortage. One of the two special-ed classrooms at Sunnyside Elementary hasn\u2019t had a fully credentialed teacher for more than a semester at a time in the last three years, according to multiple teachers there.\u00a0<\/p>\n Cynthia Payne runs Sunnyside\u2019s other classroom; three of her students are on a feeding tube, one uses a gastronomy tube, and one needs extra supervision because of seizures. Some also have behavioral challenges and cognitive delays. Payne often works with a nurse.\u00a0<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t She also often takes on work for the other classroom. \u201cIf something happens in there, they always come to me,\u201d said Payne. She has created lessons, restocked supplies, and even met with parents of kids who are not in her class.<\/p>\n \u201cI feel like, if I keep doing it, then why would they hire a teacher?\u201d she told The Frisc. \u201cI\u2019m considering not coming back next year. I hate to do that to my students, but it\u2019s just not sustainable.\u201d<\/p>\n The school board regularly asks the state for help finding extra special educators, most recently last month<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n UESF also wants more support for immigrant students<\/a> and homeless families. Immigration issues fall outside the scope of collective bargaining, SFUSD spokesperson Laura Dudnick told The Frisc in October. What\u2019s known as \u201cbargaining for the common good<\/a>\u201d is \u201cnot outside the ordinary at all,\u201d according to UESF\u2019s Alias. LAUSD included language supporting immigrant students and families in their 2022-25 contract with teachers<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n As with other demands, the cost to the district is up for debate. Educators want \u201cat least one attorney to address immigrant-related concerns,\u201d plus staff training on interactions with law enforcement<\/a>. Some of this training is already happening, but educators want more. Alias pointed to local nonprofits with \u201cproven track records\u201d that are \u201cwaiting in the wings to expand.\u201d He wasn\u2019t sure if an expansion would be on the district\u2019s dime or pro-bono from external partners.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n SFUSD already runs one overnight shelter for its homeless families. UESF wants to protect the program<\/a> by including it in their contract. Keeping what\u2019s in place wouldn\u2019t cost more money, but the union\u2019s request to create at least two more shelters at other sites might.\u00a0<\/p>\n Pandemic flashbacks<\/p>\n One parent who supports a strike is Andrea Pereira, who brought her two SFUSD kids to a recent union event to help build picket signs. \u201cMy kids have incredible teachers,\u201d and their healthcare situation is \u201ctotally unacceptable,\u201d said Pereira.<\/p>\n The threat also brings back memories of COVID. \u201cWe saw this during the pandemic,\u201d said Dodson of SF Parents Coalition. \u201cAny kind of disruption to students\u2019 learning that can be avoided, we want to avoid if we can.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe all support fair pay and good working conditions to be able to attract and retain the teachers we want here for our kids,\u201d said Dodson. \u201cAt the same time, we also understand the difficult budget situation that the district has been in for years.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n She added that a strike seems likely, and the impact would be greater on families whose adults \u201cdon\u2019t have the luxury to just be home with [their kids].\u201d More than 55 percent<\/a> of SFUSD families are socioeconomically disadvantaged, according to the state.\u00a0<\/p>\n During COVID, with schools closed and classes on Zoom for more than a year, the city\u2019s Department of Children, Youth, and Their Families (DCYF) set up supervised centers for students<\/a>. When asked if DCYF would take similar steps, a spokesperson said in part that the department is aware of the possibility of a strike and is \u201cassessing potential needs.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n![\"Flowchart](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/SFUSD-COLLECTIVE-BARGAINING-FLOWCHART-ENG-1024x767.png\")
The collective bargaining process; after an unproductive fact-finding session, the California Public Employment Relations Board will release a report (step 14) on Feb. 4. Teachers could strike that day. (SFUSD)<\/p>\n![\"UESF](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Curiel-Su-Hero.png\")
Negotiations have stalled between UESF (President Cassondra Curiel, left) and SFUSD (Superintendent Maria Su, right). The California Department of Education has the power to veto any financial decision deemed harmful to the district\u2019s budget. (San Francisco Unified School District)<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t![\"SFUSD](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Students-rally-outside-SFUSD-HQ-12.16.25.jpeg\")
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/October-Rally.jpg\")
A UESF rally outside the SFUSD headquarters before the Oct. 14 school board meeting.\u00a0They want fully funded healthcare like other Bay Area schools.<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t![\"SFUSD\u2019s](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Mariel-Reeds-kid-and-BOE-scaled.jpeg\")
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Hand-painted](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Ice-Out-Signs-SFUSD.jpg\")
UESF wants to hire a specialized attorney as part of increased support for immigrant students. SFUSD says immigration issues fall outside the scope of collective bargaining. (Photo: Taylor Barton)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Andrea-Pereira-and-Kid_SDUSD-Strike.jpg\")
Andrea Pereira, here with her kids Jack and Gloria, supports a strike. \u201cMy kids have incredible teachers,\u201d and their healthcare situation is \u201ctotally unacceptable.\u201d (Photo: Taylor Barton)<\/p>\n