{"id":214537,"date":"2026-03-11T08:22:18","date_gmt":"2026-03-11T08:22:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/214537\/"},"modified":"2026-03-11T08:22:18","modified_gmt":"2026-03-11T08:22:18","slug":"natomas-teachers-strike-for-better-pay-health-care-and-more","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/214537\/","title":{"rendered":"Natomas teachers strike for better pay, health care and more"},"content":{"rendered":"

Teachers from Natomas Unified School District went on strike Tuesday, becoming the second group of Sacramento-area teachers in a week to take to picket lines.<\/p>\n

Hundreds of people demonstrated and marched near campuses while classes continued with substitutes.<\/p>\n

Teachers followed through on a strike plan after negotiations with the district stalled<\/a>, days after teachers for the 25,000-student Twin Rivers Unified School District went on a strike. The Twin Rivers teachers strike was in its fourth day with bargaining talks resuming Tuesday afternoon at the request of Assemblymember Maggy Krell, D-Sacramento<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Teachers and officials for the 17,000-student Natomas district have been unable to agree on pay, benefits and staffing levels for school support staff.<\/p>\n

In a Tuesday morning email to families of students, a district spokesperson acknowledged that the morning\u2019s student drop off \u201clikely looked different.\u201d But the spokesperson noted results of a recently issued report<\/a> that called the district\u2019s offer to teachers reasonable.<\/p>\n

\u201cPicketing will not change the fiscal realities facing our district today,\u201d the spokesperson wrote.<\/p>\n

At a noon rally at North Natomas Regional Park, Natomas Teachers Association President Nico Vaccaro told attendees that the district has the means to pay competitive wages and invest in its students.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are on strike for our students,\u201d Vaccaro said.<\/p>\n

Where negotiations stand<\/p>\n

As The Bee reported Monday, the strike follows an 11-hour negotiating session on Sunday. The Natomas union has sought a two-year cumulative raise of 8.5%, while the district is offering 4% in that span. The union would also like better health care for teachers and their families and minimum staffing for social workers, nurses and school psychologists.<\/p>\n

\"Nico Nico Vaccaro, president of the Natomas Teachers Association, speaks to strikers in front of Natomas High School in Sacramento during the first strike at the Natomas Unified School District on Tuesday, March 10, 2026. REN\u00c9E C. BYER rbyer@sacbee.com <\/p>\n

The district officials said they had most recently adjusted their proposal Friday, offering an increased raise and a restructured health benefit plan with a fully-paid option for teachers and their dependents for the next two years. They maintain that the district\u2019s offer is consistent with the findings of a third-party fact finder and improves conditions for teachers while being mindful of the suburban district\u2019s \u201cfiscal reality.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAt the end of last week, the neutral fact finding report confirmed the district\u2019s proposal is aligned with an independent, neutral voice that they determined is reasonable within the fiscal realities facing our district,\u201d Superintendent Robyn Castillo said at a Monday news conference.<\/p>\n

\"Natomas Natomas Unified School District Superintendent Robyn Castillo waits to answer questions during a press conference at district headquarters in Sacramento on Monday. REN\u00c9E C. BYER rbyer@sacbee.com The scene at Heron School<\/p>\n

In North Natomas on Tuesday morning, around a 100 Heron School teachers chanted \u201cthe teachers united will never be defeated\u201d as they marched around the campus grounds and through nearby streets.<\/p>\n

Melinda Lai, a seventh grade science teacher at Heron School, said she\u2019s striking to urge better learning conditions for students. Lai, who also has a student at the school, said over two dozen empty positions have left students without a full-time teacher. \u201cWe\u2019re on strike today because our kids deserve safe and stable schools,\u201d Lai said.<\/p>\n

Lisa MacMillan, a first grade teacher at Heron School, was hit by a car on the first day of a recent school year. MacMillan spent a year in recovery. She said she had to pay $1,300 per month out of pocket for her medical insurance. MacMillan said low insurance coverage and fair pay are the most pressing issues for teachers.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s an issue for everybody. The district is only covering 60%,\u201d MacMillan said. \u201cHealth care keeps going up and up. That\u2019s a major issue.\u201d<\/p>\n

Parents and other guardians were determining whether to send students to schools in the district, which remained open Tuesday as the strike got underway.<\/p>\n

Machelle Mack is a grandmother of a Heron School second-grader. She supports the strike, but is concerned about the low number of teachers at the school.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am supportive of the teachers in the strike,\u201d Mack said. \u201cIt\u2019s been a long time since they\u2019ve had any increases, so my only concern is what\u2019s going to happen when there are no substitutes for the kids, right?\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Teachers Teachers picket at Heron School in North Natomas on Tuesday. EMMA HALL ehall@sacbee.com <\/p>\n

Ashley Puerta, a parent of a third-grader at Heron School, said she supported the teachers going on strike. \u201cIt\u2019s just really disappointing that the district doesn\u2019t see value in our teachers and getting our classrooms open,\u201d Puerta said. \u201cBut they see value in their own salaries\u2026it\u2019s really sad that\u2019s their priority versus all these kids.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some students were out supporting the teachers. Puerta was joined by her daughter, Adeline.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel sad for my teachers. I feel sad for my class,\u201d said Adeline, who added that she was missing school \u201cbecause my mom says the money would go to substitutes and not the teachers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Paul Rahul dropped off coffee for the Heron School teachers, who were posted on the sidewalk next to the campus. He said the 4% raise doesn\u2019t do much for the teachers, especially with the increasing cost of living in Sacramento.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt doesn\u2019t even cover the cost of living or inflation,\u201d Rahul said. \u201cWe need the administration to do a better job of supporting the teachers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rahul\u2019s seventh grader, Jaden, helped his dad in providing coffee to his teachers. He was also in support of the strike. \u201cI believe that they give us education, and they\u2019re the ones who actually taught me,\u201c Jaden said. \u201cI believe they deserve more.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rally outside Natomas High School<\/p>\n

About the time that teachers were marching at Heron School, around 100 people were rallying in front of Natomas High School.<\/p>\n

The main issues on the bargaining table, they said, are health benefits, wages and class sizes. Attendees said health benefits cut deeply into teachers\u2019 paychecks, exacerbating turnover.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a teacher retention crisis here,\u201d said Jeff Bryan, an English teacher of 13 years at Natomas High. Bryan said neighboring districts outcompete Natomas on benefits and wages.<\/p>\n

\"Jeff Jeff Bryan, an English teacher at Natomas High School, leads a chant with strikers on Tuesday, March 10, 2026, in front of the Sacramento school on the first day of the first strike in the school district’s history. REN\u00c9E C. BYER rbyer@sacbee.com <\/p>\n

\u201cWe want to get back in the classroom ASAP,\u201d Bryan said. \u201cEvery day lost that we\u2019re not in the classroom is a missed opportunity for learning.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ashley Battle, a mother of two children in the school district, said short-staffing in classrooms, and a lack of aides, is a security risk.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know teachers who have two to three jobs,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Battle said her husband teaches at Inderkum High School, and the family\u2019s health benefits take about one-third of his paychecks.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe benefits are the biggest thing,\u201d she said. \u201cNone of these teachers wanted to strike.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Supporters Supporters hold signs in front of Natomas High School in Sacramento during the first teacher strike in the Natomas Unified School District on Tuesday, March 10, 2026. REN\u00c9E C. BYER rbyer@sacbee.com <\/p>\n

Vaccaro, the union president and also a special education teacher, said members pay $1,500 per month for health care. Vaccaro said the union is pushing for fully funded benefits with Kaiser, the health system used by many of the district\u2019s employees.<\/p>\n

Vaccaro said 106 educators left the district last year, switching to other districts for better pay or leaving the profession altogether.<\/p>\n

Hundreds attend midday rally near Inderkum<\/p>\n

Hundreds gathered Tuesday for a noon rally at North Natomas Regional Park, across the street from Inderkum High School.<\/p>\n

\"Union Union leaders and supporters join in a march for the first ever Natomas educators strike at North Natomas Regional Park in Sacramento on Tuesday, March 10, 2026. REN\u00c9E C. BYER rbyer@sacbee.com <\/p>\n

Jlay Tor, a mother of four from Natomas, said she has been in the district since 2011, first with two students who graduated Inderkum, and now with two at Paso Verde. She said she has watched qualified, experienced educators leave the district. Some have begun to view Natomas as a \u201ctraining district\u201d for early-career teachers.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve seen the slow decline,\u201d Tor said.<\/p>\n

One of her children had experienced teachers for kindergarten and first grade, but first-year teachers for second and third grade.<\/p>\n

\u201cEducators across the state have had it,\u201d said California Teachers Association President David Goldberg. \u201cYou can\u2019t keep balancing the budget on our backs and our students\u2019 backs.\u201d<\/p>\n

People marched from the farmer\u2019s market marquee in the park to the North Natomas Library, past Interkum High, chanting and carrying signs.<\/p>\n

\"Natomas Natomas High School senior Ashlyn Aradhna, center, holds a sign at a rally during the first ever Natomas educators strike on Tuesday, March 10, 2026, in Sacramento. REN\u00c9E C. BYER rbyer@sacbee.com <\/p>\n

The teachers are part of a wave of Northern California strikes led by CTA. The Dublin Teachers Association began a strike Monday. Richmond teachers walked out for the first time in December, for four days, said United Teachers of Richmond President Francisco Ortiz.<\/p>\n

Ortiz said the Richmond teachers had similar complaints: they were among the lowest paid in the region, with the highest health care contributions in Contra Costa County. Plus, turnover was dramatic. The union, which represents about 1,450 people, saw 1,500 educators leave over the course of five years.<\/p>\n

They won 8% raises over the course of two years, and fully-funded health benefits, he said.<\/p>\n

The Bee\u2019s Jennah Pendleton contributed to this story.<\/p>\n

\"California California Teachers Association President David Goldberg speaks at a rally on Tuesday, March 10, 2026, at North Natomas Regional Park in Sacramento during the first day of the Natomas school district teachers’ strike. REN\u00c9E C. BYER rbyer@sacbee.com <\/p>\n


\n \"Profile
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

Graham Womack<\/a><\/p>\n

The Sacramento Bee<\/p>\n

Graham Womack is a general assignment reporter for The Sacramento Bee. Prior to joining The Bee full-time in September 2025, he freelanced for the publication for several years. His work has won several California Journalism Awards and spurred state legislation.\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Teachers from Natomas Unified School District went on strike Tuesday, becoming the second group of Sacramento-area teachers in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":214538,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[68398,83251,97976,917,121,123,122,86],"class_list":["post-214537","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sacramento","tag-cta","tag-natomas-teachers-association","tag-natomas-teachers-strike","tag-natomas-unified-school-district","tag-sacramento","tag-sacramento-headlines","tag-sacramento-news","tag-strike"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/214537","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=214537"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/214537\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/214538"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=214537"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=214537"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=214537"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}