10:08 a.m., Tuesday, Oct. 31 Update 

The threat of a teacher strike against Fresno Unified has been averted and a tentative contract agreement has been reached, Superintendent Bob Nelson said Tuesday morning during a news conference at Fresno High School.

Nelson’s comments followed a report early Monday evening by GV Wire that multiple sources close to the negotiations said the district and teachers union had reached a tentative contract agreement.

(Original Story)

The threat of a teacher strike against Fresno Unified apparently has been averted, with sources close to the negotiations telling GV Wire on Monday afternoon that the district and teachers union have reached a tentative contract agreement.

District and Fresno Teachers Association officials have scheduled a news conference Tuesday morning to provide an update on contract negotiations.

The district and union issued the following joint statement Monday afternoon in a news release: “With a strike on the horizon, negotiators representing district administrators and teachers have spent countless hours over the past weekend making considerable progress to address contract terms.

“Both sides are continuing to work through this evening and remain optimistic about continued progress.”

A former district official said the fact that the two sides issued a joint communiqué points to the likelihood that they’ve reached a tentative agreement.

Still Negotiating?

School district officials told GV Wire, however, that the two sides were still in negotiations Monday evening to finalize the tentative pact.

The district and union will hold the joint news conference at 10 a.m. Tuesday at Fresno High School.

The union’s membership voted overwhelmingly earlier this month to authorize a strike, and the FTA executive board set a strike date of Wednesday, Nov. 1 unless a tentative agreement was in hand by then.

The union was pressing for four major issues: Tying teacher pay to the rate of inflation, maintaining the district’s current contribution to the healthcare fund, reducing class sizes, and reducing special education caseloads.

The last time Fresno teachers went on strike was in 1978.