Negotiations stall between Santa Barbara Unified School District and Teachers Association

SANTA BARBARA COUNTY, Calif. — Negotiations between the Santa Barbara Unified School District and the Santa Barbara Teachers Association stalled once more on Thursday.

According to SBUSD, the SBTA resubmitted a salary proposal from December that was denied by the county district.

In December, SBTA proposed a 15% increase for the 2024-2025 school year and an 8% increase for the 2025-2026 school year, while SBUSD responded with an offer of a 9% increase for the 2024-25 school year and a 4% increase for the 2025-26 school year.

The district had also proposed a salary enhancement step to beginning salary earners and highest salary earners to 4% each.

The SBTA responded in a press release after the failed negotiations saying they're standing on their last "compensation proposal" and say they found "a number of justifications" for their proposal.

SBTA highlighted what they claim has been SBUSD's required minimum cost of education expenses for classroom compensation (55%) for the past eight years and say they did not follow through it in the 2022-2023 school year.

"So, for the eight prior years, your numbers indicate that Santa Barbara Unified School District has spent an average of just .326% above bare minimum required by law for classroom education — not counting last year when you dropped below the requirement," said SBTA in a press release. "Fifty-five percent spending on the classroom is a minimum that the District has treated like a goal. Santa Barbara students deserve better!"

According to the SBUSD, the teachers association acted in bad faith and are declining to engage in "one-sided negotiations."

The stalled salary talks led the district to make a process proposal "instead of waiting for the end of an impasse process," which means a way to resolve a collective bargaining dispute through the intervention of a third party after an unresolved matter.

SBUSD proposed a new process proposal for an in-depth analysis of their budget, calling it “fact finding before fact finding."

Here is what the new proposal process would like, according to the district:

• Each party would bring in their budget experts who would receive all relevant budget documents and any information proposed by either party to be included.
• The budget experts would meet and confer as they determine, e.g., in person or digitally, with or without the parties present.
• The budget experts would report out findings and recommendations as they determine, e.g., in writing to the parties and/or in person at a negotiations session. These findings and recommendations do not necessarily need to be in agreement; for example each budget expert could make their own recommendations and findings.
• The negotiating teams would use the information provided to inform their proposals and, hopefully, move to an agreement or at least closer to an agreement.
• Even assuming no agreement is reached, it is likely both parties will be better informed and more prepared to engage meaningfully in the impasse process.

However, SBUSD also says having "new eyes" to examine financial information could hold better promise of moving the parties forward than continuing the present dilemma.

"We want to reach an agreement and we think this will help," said SBUSD.

SBTA says they will consider the process proposal and will respond to the district soon as soon as Thursday evening.

"While reprioritizing money will obviously be required for our salary proposal," SBTA said in a press release. "We are assuming that the district will make every effort to limit the impact to students, and with the many hours we have spent looking at the budget we see this to be possible."

The next negotiations session between the two parties is scheduled for January 19th at 5:45 p.m.