In the event that San Francisco public school teachers walk off the job on Monday, principals and administrators announced today that they will strike in solidarity.
The 253 principals, assistant principals, program administrators and supervisors “voted by a strong margin to authorize this sympathy strike,” wrote United Administrators of San Francisco president Anna Klafter.
“We recognize that school closures — even temporary ones — are disruptive and stressful for families. However, as long as educators remain on the picket line, there is no safe way to operate schools as usual.”
In addition to principals and administrators, the clerks and custodians represented by the SEIU 1021 union have also authorized a sympathy strike.
Superintendent Maria Su today announced that in the event of a strike on Monday, all school sites will close. Plans to disseminate food to families reliant upon school breakfasts and lunches will rely upon third-party sites, as will after-school programs.
At this morning’s press conference, Su broke down in tears after announcing that the district has not been able to reach an agreement with the teachers union. It is unclear if schools will open on Monday even if the parties come to an agreement over the weekend.
Su today said that the union yesterday declined to provide a counteroffer. An SFUSD communique said that, on Thursday evening, the district’s bargaining team offered two options for health benefits, neither of which are fully funded, in addition to an offer of a six percent raise over the course of three years. The union refused this offer.
The principals and administrators union, like the teachers, threatened a strike last year. It was averted in October following a marathon bargaining session.
“A single administrator alone in a school building does not constitute a functioning or safe school environment. Under these conditions, keeping schools open puts students at risk,” wrote Klafter.
“Temporarily closing schools and providing childcare through city partnerships is the most responsible option at this time. UASF members stand ready to return immediately and lead our school communities as soon as the strike concludes. Until then, we will stand in solidarity on the picket line.”
The district and the teachers union are next slated to meet on Saturday at 2 p.m. The district on Friday said that the union declined to meet this morning. In a statement posted yesterday evening, the union stated that it will not meet with the district until the SFUSD is ready to present a “serious offer.”
Didn’t the district email us every day last week to say they were offering fully funded dependent care? Didn’t they make the same offer according to independent fact finders? And now they’re partially backtracking?
“A single administrator alone in a school building does not constitute a functioning or safe school environment. Under these conditions, keeping schools open puts students at risk.” Glad the district is admitting this, at many of our middle schools the district is recommending cutting assistant principals AND security personnel. That leaves “a single administrator alone in a school building”. Teachers are fighting for much more than a crappy raise (cost of living adjustment really) and healthcare. They are also asking for safe, fully staffed schools and caps on class size. Seems reasonable.
Wow–I’m surprised to see such negative comments here about the UESF and the teachers it represents. I would expect that in the Chronicle’s slanted Jill Tucker article, but the comments were actually diverse in opinion, with many supporting the teachers. I don’t subscribe to the Chronicle, so I can’t comment there, but I’ll do it here.
First, it is NOT true that SF teachers have the best benefits “compared to nearly every other Bay Area district.” A quick google search yields this information: San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) teachers receive competitive benefits, highlighted by rare lifetime retiree health benefits and a $5,000 national board certification bonus, yet mid-career pay ($89,000) often lags behind top-paying districts like Mountain View-Los Altos ($147,000). SFUSD offers 4-8 year retention bonuses, specialized bonuses, and recently implemented significant salary increases ($9,000+ raise in 2023) to address cost-of-living challenges.
And, the lifetime benefit is ONLY for teachers who work in the district for at least 20 years straight. It’s not for every retiree. I felt very lucky to be able to receive this benefit after 23 years of dedication to this district and some of the most underserved students.
Something else no one has mentioned–there is a VERY limited strike fund, so most teachers will be losing money as they strike. One has to think about that. It’s a huge sacrifice. Teachers would not be striking if they didn’t have to. The cost of having a dependent on a health plan is too high. It’s higher than other Bay Area companies, United for one.
I haven’t seen much commentary about why the SF school district, in one of the richest cities in the U.S., is broke. Why no mention of the Empower fiasco which cost the district millions? Again, from a quick google search: “The system cost $14 million initially, with millions more required for fixes, including hiring external help to fix the payroll, totaling at least $16.8 million in reported costs, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.” And then there is the “rainy day” set aside of 111 million, which is a measure the district took in an effort to follow state recommendations for fiscal management, but they seem like austerity measures to me. Below are some stats about how many millionaires and billionaires SF has. Why hasn’t our city government tapped those resources in some way so that we can have a robust public school system? One that some of these wealthy individuals might even deign to send their precious children, instead of forking our 40,000+ a year on private schools. Research shows that all students do better in schools that are diverse, especially socioeconomically diverse.
Millionaires: Approximately 342,400 residents in the San Francisco Bay Area have a net worth of ($1) million or more.Billionaires: There are 82 billionaires residing in the San Francisco/Bay Area region. Centimillionaires: The region is home to 756 individuals worth ($100) million or more.Ultra-High Net Worth (UHNW): The San Francisco metropolitan area ranks fifth globally for its UHNW population, with 4,380 individuals holding a fortune of ($30) million or more.
Stop blaming teachers!
The teachers are the people looking out for our kids every day. I and many other SFUSD parents stand behind them 100%.
I think sympathy is limited because the union’s demands would lead to financial insolvency The independent fact-finder sided almost completely with the district. You can’t get money that isn’t there.
Frankly, I am the head of my organization and make less than a typical SFUSD teacher– and I don’t get seven weeks off during the summer, so I also don’t think they’re living on poverty wages. The average salary in Los Altos is irrelevant; that’s an incredibly wealthy area with a fiscally better-off district.
I’m not saying the district has been great at managing money. Empower was a ridiculous fiasco that revealed just how incompetent the district is. But pushing the district to insolvency and state takeover is not the way to get teachers’ salaries up. It *might lead to better management eventually, but it will almost certainly fuel school closures and other budget-cutting measures.
The District’s funding is not a law of nature. It’s out of money because the governments which fund it don’t want to come up with the cash. They need to get their priorities straight.
If the unions think the district raise & benefits offer is insufficient (despite already having higher total staffing AND the highest/most generous benefits compared to nearly every other Bay Area district) – just wait until they see the closures and related issues the state will bring when it removes the district’s recently obtained “Qualified” rating and takes over full control & oversight of the district operations & budget, slashing schools and staff as they have promised to do if the current $113 million dollar deficit isn’t resolved. Also, at an estimated $7-$10 million in daily losses in funding due to the strike next week, in just over a week of closures that $113 million deficit would double the district deficit…
To quote your own website article by Marina Newman on Dec 5th, 2025:
“The district has been under threat of a full state takeover of its operations and finances, which would likely lead to school closures and consolidations. “
Just curious, why SFUSD has never been taken over by the state, like OUSD, which has been taken over, at least 3X? As I stated previously, any parent that can rub 2 nickels together are putting their kids, in private school.What is so sad, that a BART custodian, with over time, can easily make 100K,while teachers clock in at 60K a year, and teachers don’t get over time, even though their work is never done.
Yep – it’s called FAFO AND THEY SHOULD FEEL IT!
How about a city-wide sympathy strike in support of the teachers?
And if not, why not?
Su, is probably a nice person, but she’s over her head and should quit, like the person, before her did. She will get a nice package of a million dollars.
There are a host of other issues that are going on behind the scenes with SFUSD, and everyone is tired of the excuses and lack of accountability with the district. The new payroll system is messed up, employees aren’t being paid correctly, not accruing vacation correctly, and employees are finding at that even though their pension is coming out of their paychecks, that money is not being deposited into their actual retirement accounts. The list is so long, it’s exhausting. The district is “broke” because they make terrible decisions and then pass the cost onto employees and school sites. If custodians are striking with the teachers, you better believe it’s because everyone has HAD IT. Meanwhile, Maria Su gets paid well over $300,000, with a housing and car stipend. She got a raise with her contract extension.
It looks like a great way to start yet another recall.
It behooves both sides to accept the fact finding recommendations. Pray today’s meeting is productive.