Fresno Teachers Win Historic Contract - California Teachers Association

WHEN BARGAINING STARTED last year, 4,000 Fresno teachers committed to each other to do whatever it took for the schools #EveryFresnoStudent deserves. In October, their unbreakable unity powered a historic contract victory that averted a strike and sets the foundation for transforming Fresno public schools.

On Halloween, it was all treats and no tricks for Fresno Teachers Association (FTA) with the announcement that a tentative agreement had been reached less than 24 hours before Fresno teachers were set to walk picket lines for the first time in 45 years.

“At the core of this negotiation were four major priorities: reducing class sizes for students, reducing special education caseloads, keeping our teachers competitively paid, and ensuring continued and stable health coverage,” FTA President Manuel Bonilla said at an Oct. 31 press conference at Fresno High School. “Today, we’ve reached a historic agreement that not only accomplishes those goals, it exceeds them.”

Among FTA’s victories: a commitment that a portion of future bond money will go to increasing classroom space and elementary music space, additional funding for student supports and a plan to have a school nurse at every school in three years.

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