On April 5th, over a thousand teachers in the Hayward Unified School District went on strike. Pickets took place throughout the day in front of the 38 school sites in the 20,000-student Hayward district. There was also a noon rally of parents, teachers and other supporters in Birchfield Park.

"This is a teachable moment" said Hayward Education Association President Kathleen Crummey. "We don't want to strike, but teachers are being forced to teach the school board a lesson we hope they remember. The lesson is that Hayward teachers are willing to strike now to protect the quality of education here for years to come." Low pay is causing an exodus of district teachers, with more than 100 leaving this school year alone, and more than 500 leaving in the past three years. Adding insult to injury, the district gave its top administrators a 16.84 percent raise for 2006-07. Hayward teachers, among the lowest-paid in the East Bay, are demanding a 16 percent increase over two years.

Wednesday April 4th, teachers rejected the district's latest offer of a 3 percent one-time "bonus" for the current school year; 7 percent on the salary schedule for the new school year that begins July 1 and an additional 1.6 percent raise for next school year that would be paid only if enough veteran teachers agreed to retire to fund the increase. Starting pay for Hayward educators is $47,000 and top pay, after 18 years of service, is $79,000. Hayward educators must also pay all of their health benefit costs out of their own salaries. Some Hayward teachers must pay $10,000 or more annually for health coverage. Teachers received only a 0.83 percent raise midyear for the 2005-06 school year.

Photos 1 | 2 | CTA News Release: School Strike is Still On | Hayward Education Association