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On Saturday, Oct. 26, Las Lomitas Elementary School District teachers reached a tentative agreement with the district after three days of striking. The agreement includes a 16% raise over three years and fully-funded health benefits, according to an LLEA press release on Oct. 27.
The LLEA met with the district on the evening of Oct. 26 and later announced on social media platforms that it was able to come to a tentative agreement with Superintendent Beth Polito and the school board.
The district and LLEA agreed to a 7% ongoing salary increase paid retroactively for 2023-24, an additional 5% salary increase effective Jan. 1, 2025, and an additional 4% salary increase in Jan. 1, 2026. The agreement also includes 100% health insurance coverage and an extension of $3,358 tenure stipend for all teachers.
Three instructional days will be added to the 2024-25 school year for the days lost during the strike. The district will be announcing the specific days after coordinating with the LLEA, said a statement from the district on Oct. 27.
“School districts prioritizing competitive salaries and supportive work environments see better retention rates,” said Jennifer Montalvo, LLEA co-president. “We’ve faced high turnover for years and it took all of us coming together in our union to address this crisis for our students and each other. This victory will bring much-deserved stability to our school communities.”
According to an announcement signed by the district and LLEA on Oct. 16, “the strike has been called off and students and staff should return to their schools per usual starting Monday.” Details of the agreement were not included in this announcement.
In the coming days, educators will vote to ratify the tentative agreement.
“We are so excited to go back to the classroom tomorrow and do what we love to do. Thank you to all our supporters, especially our parents, who were with us until the very end,” said Daniella Lefer, LLEA co-president in the statement.
Editor’s note: This is a developing story and will be updated.
