UTLA’s Strike Threat Shows How Far the Union Has Drifted From Classroom Reality

(Source: Larry Sand in the San Gabriel Valley Tribune: The Los Angeles teachers’ union is close to striking, again

Los Angeles teachers face another union‑driven strike as UTLA pushes political demands unrelated to student learning or classroom needs.

United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA) is once again preparing to walk out—this time after 94% of members voted on January 31 to authorize a strike following stalled contract talks with LAUSD. The union’s demands range from pay raises and smaller class sizes to housing development on district‑owned land. But as Larry Sand notes in his recent commentary, the union’s priorities reveal a deeper problem: UTLA’s agenda has drifted far from the needs of students, families, and classroom educators.

Teacher Pay: The Numbers UTLA Doesn’t Want Discussed

Sand highlights a critical fact missing from UTLA’s messaging: Los Angeles teachers already earn far more than the union suggests.

• New teachers earn $68,896 in salary alone.
• After 10 years, pay exceeds $100,000.
• When benefits are included, a new teacher’s total compensation surpasses $100,000.
• Transparent California reports that in 2024, the average LAUSD teacher received $102,000 in pay plus $35,652 in benefits.

These are generous compensation packages—especially in a district where student enrollment has collapsed by more than 40% since 2002, leaving nearly half of elementary schools half‑empty or worse.

Student Outcomes: The Crisis UTLA Pretends Doesn’t Exist

While UTLA demands more money for fewer students, academic results continue to crater:

• Only 22% of 8th graders scored proficient in reading on the 2024 NAEP.
• Only 18% reached proficiency in math.

Instead of confronting this crisis, UTLA leadership has insisted that “learning loss” is a myth—going so far as to claim students “didn’t lose anything” during the union‑mandated COVID shutdowns. This denialism is not just irresponsible; it is dangerous for families who rely on public schools to deliver real learning, not political narratives.

A Political Agenda Masquerading as Collective Bargaining

Sand’s commentary makes clear that UTLA’s bargaining priorities extend far beyond wages and working conditions:

• Expanding DEI programs and ethnic studies initiatives
• Targeted hiring based on racial and identity categories
• LGBTQIA+ policy expansions
• Foreign‑policy resolutions attacking Israel and threatening political endorsements based on Middle East positions

These are political demands—not classroom necessities. UTLA has repeatedly used its monopoly bargaining power to push ideological positions unrelated to student achievement or teacher support.

What This Means for Teachers Who Want a Voice

For independent‑minded educators, UTLA’s strike threat is a reminder of why forced representation harms teachers and students alike:

• Teachers who disagree with UTLA’s political agenda cannot opt out of the union’s representation under California’s monopoly bargaining laws.
• Families have no recourse when the union shuts down schools to advance political goals.
• The district must negotiate issues far outside the scope of education because UTLA insists on inserting them into its contract demands.
• Teachers, thanks to Janus v. AFSCME, can opt out of paying teachers’ dues at JanusRights.org, run by the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation, whose Legal Director argued and won the Janus Supreme Court case. They also offer free legal help ahould yo need it when dealing with the union.

CEAFU’s Position

CEAFU stands with educators who want choice, professional autonomy, and representation that reflects classroom priorities—not ideological crusades.

UTLA’s looming strike is not about helping students. It is not about supporting teachers. It is about preserving union power at a time when enrollment decline, academic failure, and public frustration are exposing the limits of monopoly bargaining.

Teachers deserve better. Families deserve better. Los Angeles deserves better.