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UPDATE: Strike Avoided! Teachers & Fresno Unified Agree on Contract
Bill McEwen updated website photo 2024
By Bill McEwen, News Director
Published 7 years ago on
January 17, 2018

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Multiple sources told GV Wire on Wednesday morning that Fresno Unified leaders and the Fresno Teachers Association have struck a deal on a new three-year contract.
Negotiators for both sides worked until 5 a.m. to get the deal done, and to avoid the district’s first teachers strike since 1978.
A source within FTA said that trustee approval was expected to be a “mere formality.” Sources additionally credited Superintendent Bob Nelson with winning the trust of union negotiators.
Nelson confirmed that an agreement had been reached at 11:39 a.m.


The agreement, which must be approved by the Board of Trustees and FTA members, includes raises and the district taking on a greater percentage of healthcare costs.
In addition, there will be “side agreements” in which the district promises to address teacher concerns over class sizes, discipline and special education programming.
UPDATE — 11;43 a.m.
A 1 p.m. news conference has been scheduled at Ann Leavenworth Elementary School, 4420 E. Thomas Ave., to discuss the agreement.
UPDATE — 11:57 a.m.
Here is Fresno Unified’s news release:
“Fresno Unified School District and Fresno Teachers Association are pleased to announce that they have reached a tentative agreement on the successor agreement resolving all outstanding bargaining issues.
“Now that a tentative agreement is signed, the next step is for each of the parties to ratify the agreement.  The Fresno Teachers Association is tentatively scheduled to vote on ratifying the successor contract as soon as possible. Once FTA has approved the successor contract, the District Board of Education will have an opportunity to ratify it.
“The District and FTA look forward to working together in utilizing their partnership to foster student achievement.”
 

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Bill McEwen,
News Director
Bill McEwen is news director and columnist for GV Wire. He joined GV Wire in August 2017 after 37 years at The Fresno Bee. With The Bee, he served as Opinion Editor, City Hall reporter, Metro columnist, sports columnist and sports editor through the years. His work has been frequently honored by the California Newspapers Publishers Association, including authoring first-place editorials in 2015 and 2016. Bill and his wife, Karen, are proud parents of two adult sons, and they have two grandsons. You can contact Bill at 559-492-4031 or at Send an Email

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