Teachers’ union urges Mount Diablo board to rebuild trust, press for fair contract talks

Linda Ortega, president of the Mount Diablo Education Association, told the Mount Diablo Unified School District board on Oct. 15 that teachers are “worried they won't be able to keep up with the rising cost of living” and urged trustees to direct the district bargaining team to negotiate a fair contract.

Ortega, who represents about 1,600 district educators, said staff report classroom maintenance problems, insufficient site support and repeated dismissive treatment by leadership. “Trust. Somewhere along the way, trust has been broken,” she said, asking the board to rebuild a culture of respect for employees and to hold an open budget information meeting to increase transparency.

Ortega framed compensation as necessary to retain qualified teachers who hold advanced degrees: she noted that California’s nominal teacher pay is high but falls in rankings after cost‑of‑living adjustments and that many educators could command higher salaries outside the classroom. She asked trustees to direct bargaining teams to negotiate in good faith and to reach a fair settlement.

Board members acknowledged the concern and scheduled follow‑up budget discussions. Trustee Lawrence, speaking later in the meeting during board reports, said rising costs for special education and benefits already account for an estimated $8 million of projected expenditures for the coming year and that a projected COLA of about $12 million would thus leave roughly $4 million available for other uses, noting the district faces difficult tradeoffs in any salary plan.

The board did not take an immediate bargaining action at the meeting. Ortega’s remarks were delivered during the public comment period and were not the subject of formal board action at this session.