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District Workers Tell Board Pay Parity with City Is Urgent; SEIU, Supporters Cite Retention Crisis
Summary
San Francisco Unified School District employees and SEIU representatives pressed the board to address an estimated 15—18% pay gap with city jobs, linking recruitment and retention problems to service losses and increased workloads; the board acknowledged concerns and requested further study.
Representatives of SEIU Local 1021 and other district employees told the Board of Education that classified staff earn substantially less than comparable city and county workers, urging the district to develop a phased plan to close the gap.
Union leaders and longtime employees described an 15—18% wage disparity for custodians, clerks and food-service workers compared with city counterparts. Rafael Picazo, SEIU vice president and a 33-year district employee, said members are increasingly leaving for higher-paying city jobs and several speakers recounted operational backlogs in IT, finance and other departments caused by staff losses.
Why it matters: Speakers argued that pay parity is essential to retain experienced staff who keep schools clean, feed students and process mandatory reimbursements; they emphasized downstream effects on student services if staffing continues to decline.
What was requested: SEIU asked the board to direct negotiators to present a serious, phased proposal that achieves parity with the city and to prioritize permanent hires for long-term "as-needed" positions. Staff and union speakers also requested the district consider compensation adjustments to reduce turnover.
Board response: Board members acknowledged the testimony, praised worker service and said they would expect negotiators and budget staff to review the issue. No bargaining outcome was reached at the meeting; union leaders asked for direct negotiations and a public response from district negotiators.
Next steps: SEIU requested the district's negotiation team to return with proposals; board committee meetings on budget and LCAP were flagged as venues for further discussion of staffing and funding priorities.
The testimony underscored the link between compensation policy and local labor markets; speakers said short-term fixes and long-term planning will both be needed to stabilize staffing.
