Dear Las Lomitas Community,
This continues to be a challenging time for our district. Our teachers are not only inspirational educators, but also fellow parents and friends. We appreciate and respect our teachers for everything they contribute to the school community, both inside and outside the classroom. As board members, we strive to balance well-resourced student programs with highly competitive compensation that attracts and retains excellent staff, all while adhering to our fiduciary duty to oversee the budget. We remain optimistic that we can resolve collective bargaining soon and return our focus back to our students.
Fact-Finding Report and New Offer
On October 14, the school board received this fact-finding report from the neutral representative of the Public Employment Relations Board (PERB). This is an advisory report only and is not binding for either the district or the LLEA.
The release of the fact-finding report to the negotiating parties typically kicks off a holding period during which parties try to come back to the table. Upon further review of the budget, the district provided LLEA with a new offer on Friday, October 18.
The district’s first priority was to reopen dialogue with the LLEA and consider a new offer. Since the LLEA has not yet responded and, in light of community requests for the report, the district is now releasing it publicly in advance of the October 24 deadline (10 days post receipt).
Report Summary
The PERB representative recommended either:
- A one-year settlement of a 7% salary increase (plus a $1,972 bump in health benefits and a floating cap of 110% coverage of a Kaiser individual plan), or
- A two-year settlement of a 6% increase for 2023-24 and a 5% increase for 2024-25 (plus 100% coverage of a Kaiser individual plan in 2025).
Both parties rejected most of the recommendations:
- The LLEA found the salary recommendation insufficient and reinforced its ask for a 10% raise.
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The district disagreed with the recommendation to use reserves to cover ongoing salary increases. Doing so would reduce district reserves to 12% (for the one-year deal) or 9% (for the two-year deal) as per the chart below. Any future salary increases would further reduce reserves.
