More than 700 Dublin teachers strike Monday after no deal reached between union and district

DUBLIN, Calif. (KGO) -- Teachers in Dublin went on strike Monday morning after a teachers' union and the Dublin Unified School District could not reach a contract agreement.

It is the latest district in the Bay Area to see teachers strike in recent weeks. Schools are open in Dublin but over 700 teachers are not on the job as they fight for higher pay. Students and parents will face disruptions if there is not a deal made in the coming days.

The union is asking for a 3.5% salary increase, increased health care benefit coverage, and reduced class sizes.

They want elementary school classrooms to be capped at 20 students, and they want to maintain a full-time counselor at each elementary school.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Dublin teachers to go on strike Monday if no deal is reached with school district

The contract expired in June, and they have been negotiating the entire academic year.

"Our educators and our community demand that they invest in the best for our students," Dublin Teachers Association President Brad Dobrzenski said. "We want lower class sizes so that every single student gets the attention and individual care they deserve."

Dublin Unified School District says it's accepting a neutral fact-finder's compromise proposal, which includes a 2.1% raise and an incremental increase in health benefits over three years. That proposal would cost $11.6 million dollars.

But the district says DTA's counteroffer would cost nearly $32 million over three years.

In a Sunday community note, the district said, "agreements that exceed our fiscal capacity are not student-centered and show up in the classroom."

Parent Kent Yip got word from the district that there will be modified schedules at some schools.

"The class times are shorter. They let us know they won't be teaching any new materials. But at least the kids have somewhere to go," Yip said.

Breakfast and lunch will be served, and the students will be supervised according to the district.

According to a neutral fact-finding report, Dublin teachers are among the highest paid in the Bay Area, but the union says teachers have not gotten pay raises in the past two years.

"It's expensive living here, especially in Dublin. We support the teachers' salaries. Getting higher pay, smaller classrooms-- that will be great for the students too," Kip said.

Sunday afternoon, union leaders and district leaders met up, hoping to strike a last-minute deal. But no luck.

So Monday, educators picketed at more than a dozen schools districtwide.

Michael Scheere, a special education teacher at Fredericksen Elementary, was on the picket line with his 4th grade daughter.

"It's challenging. We can't pay attention to all our individual students as well as we possibly could," said Scheere.

"We haven't gotten a raise in the last two years. It's not like what we're asking for is astronomical. It's a cost of living--which most professions get and don't have to fight for," said Naomi Grim, a 3rd grade teacher at Fredericksen Elementary who walked the picket line with her colleagues.

"Every year, the district gets additional revenue called a cost of living adjustment. We are asking that they pass that along to make sure we retain and recruit the best educators," said Dobrzenski.

Superintendent Chris Funk told ABC7 Eyewitness News on Monday that he feels as though the Dublin Teachers' Association keeps "moving the goalpost" after they offered a compromised solution.

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The district says the union's proposal would lead to program, staffing and service cuts.

"Our current offer would mean that this time next year, we would need to trim $7 million dollars from our budget for the 27-28 school year," said Funk. "Our offier is 2.1%. So going up to 3.5% would just mean even more cuts."

Late Monday afternoon, a rally at Kolb Park in Dublin brought out numerous supporters backing the teachers union.

"We ask our teachers to do the impossible; we ask them to be social workers. We ask them to be therapists," said Congressman Eric Swalwell, who represents Eastern Alameda County. "We owe you everything."

Teachers plan to return to the picket line Tuesday.

There have been two teacher strikes recently in the Bay Area.

The first was in December by educators in the West Contra Costa Unified School District.

Then, last month, San Francisco teachers walked out for nearly a week.

It appeared teachers in Oakland were going to hit the picket line too, but there was a last-minute deal.