An update from the HTEC union
March 9, 2022
To our Educators, Families, Students, Administrators, Governing Boards, and Community:
Educators across all our schools decided in the Spring of 2021 to form a union, the High Tech Education Collective. As educators in our unique schools, we value the community we have created where our students are empowered to share their voices and to work together in solving real world problems. Our unionizing effort has been a way for us to empower staff in the same way, to collaborate and address the areas of growth in the schools we love so much. Due to the structure of labor unions in California, our union initially could only include certificated staff. However, we know that teachers and certificated staff are not the only ones who need a voice at the table. From the moment we discussed a name to submit with our initial filing, we knew we wanted to leave the door open to as many members as possible. Now it is time for more of our colleagues to walk through that open door.
As of this week, our classified colleagues have also announced their intention to unionize, and are filing a petition with the Public Employment Relations Board. These classified workers include academic coaches, before and after care, site managers, custodial staff, and more. These are the humans who work directly with our students every single day, who care for our spaces, and who are the faces that our students and families see when they walk in the door. We are thrilled that they, too, will have the collective power to advocate for fair and reliable compensation, recognition for years of service, and necessary benefits like health care, sick pay, and bereavement. We can’t wait to collaborate with them as we work together to create schools that represent the needs of our whole community.
As we welcome our classified colleagues into our union, please read their letter:
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