The votes are in: Our 2025-2027 contract has been ratified!

An overwhelming 93% of SDEA members voted to ratify our tentative agreement, with 4957 ballots turned in! The contract will go into effect as soon as the District signs off at next month’s board meeting (a minor step!) It’s our votes and our voices that built this contract and voted to implement it!

Ratification Vote Tally

The Election Committee has been the lead on both the votes members recently completed. Please reach out with questions or concerns directly to the committee via email at sdeaelections@sdea.net. 

Our improved contract:

This contract includes improvements to staffing, pay, and stability… including:

• Concrete fixes for Special Education staffing
• 5% pay raise over 2 years – see what that looks like for you with this calculator 
• Locked in fully-paid family healthcare (including Kaiser $10 co-pay)
• Side Letter for no layoffs 
• No fall excessing at Title I schools – that’s 150 out of 175 schools
• Restored Early Childhood Education Teacher stipend
• Seniority for summer school hiring
• Protections for immigrant and LGBTQ+ educators and students
• …and more! 

See more details of what has changed and answers to frequently asked questions in our 2025-2027 Contract Resources!

This is a contract built for members and by members!

Your union is a democracy, which means YOU have a voice in the decisions that shape your working conditions. SDEA members participated in every step of this contract process, and the improvements that we won are because members showed up to fight for them!

• In Fall of 2024, members identified priorities at Bargaining Input Sessions across the District and ratified a bargaining platform.
• In Spring of 2025, members kicked off bargaining by holding rallies and walk-ins across the District, and won our first significant tentative agreement after a week of rolling pickets.
• Members kept showing up throughout Fall 2025 as negotiations continued.
• As bargaining progressed and the Special Education staffing crisis worsened, SDEA union educators proved we’re willing to do whatever it takes to fight for what our students need… even to go on strike, if needed.
• Once members on the bargaining team reached a tentative agreement with the District, site reps led meetings at each school to discuss the agreement, answer questions, and vote whether or not to ratify it.

Every step of the way, member voices are the foundation of our democratic union: Brainstorming priorities, negotiating contract language at the bargaining table, explaining our fight to families, chanting on picket lines, talking to colleagues to make sure everyone has a chance to participate, asking questions, and having the hard conversations about what our schools need and how to make it happen.

Members rallying with their community in May 2025!

We’ve ratified a contract… but remember that there’s more to come.

This coming Fall, we’ll already be beginning the brainstorming process again about what we might include in our next contract. As you review what’s changed in our contract and see how the changes impact you and your students, remember to keep the conversation going about how we can all fight to keep improving our teaching and learning conditions next time.

We had to threaten a strike just to settle the Special Education Unfair Labor Practice. We know we’re going to have to keep fighting to get what our students need! 

Keep showing up. Keep participating. Keep our union strong.

SDEA members just voted on union leadership as well as on our union contract, and the results mean that there will be a runoff election for multiple seats. Stay tuned for another electronic ballot to vote in the runoff election between April 13 – 17. Our democracy is stronger every time we use our voices. Stay involved. Stay active. Continue the conversations.

Site leaders showing their solidarity at our February 2026 Strike Summit!