Oakland teachers could strike Thursday

Oakland teachers will go on strike Thursday if they cannot reach an agreement with Oakland Unified by that day, Oakland Education Association leaders at a news  conference Monday. The strike would affect 35,000 K-12 students.

Oakland Unified and the teachers union have been in negotiations since October over a number of issues including increased pay, campus safety and reduced class sizes.

Union leaders claim district officials have come to negotiations unprepared and that they are not bargaining in good faith. The union is striking over the district’s unfair labor practices, said President Ismael Armendariz.

“We promise you we have done everything we can to avert this strike,” Armendariz said. “The district has truly failed our students, and the time for us to act is now.”

Oakland Unified issued a statement saying its leadership was disappointed to hear about the strike announcement:

“We are pleased to hear that OEA will continue to negotiate with us at the bargaining table,” it stated. “We look forward to reaching an agreement that benefits our students, educators, and district.

“We appreciate the hard work of both negotiating teams as they have worked nearly non-stop to come to a resolution. Our team has remained at the bargaining table daily since Thursday and is committed to continuing to work in good faith toward a contract that works for both sides. We remain optimistic that we will collectively come to a resolution in time to prevent the teachers from hitting the picket lines, and keeping our kids in school.”