Striking Los Angeles teachers get a (good) deal and may be back in schools Wednesday

Striking Los Angeles teachers have reached a tentative agreement with the school district, and will likely be back in schools on Wednesday if union members vote to accept the deal—as United Teachers Los Angeles President Alex Caputo-Pearl said, “We are a democratic union, our members are going to vote on this today.”

While full details aren’t yet public, the deal reportedly includes a 6 percent raise for teachers, but more importantly, it contains measures to reduce class sizes. The district has also agreed to add school nurses, librarians, and counselors. Calling it “a historic agreement,” Mayor Eric Garcetti said “It gets to lower class sizes. It gets to proper support staff.”

Teachers spent six days picketing, with negotiations going on nearly around the clock on the final day of the strike. Huge community support—based in large part on the reality that teachers were fighting for conditions that would help students—buoyed them through the strike.