March 1, 2021
The Seattle Education Association is the voice for educators and our students, standing united to address the needs of our community during this pandemic and to transform our district into an anti-racist school system where every student thrives.
ACT NOW!
1. Post this message to your social media account with the hashtag #SEAStrong: There cannot be a safe return to in-person without trust and collaboration. We call on SPS to negotiate in good faith and focus their energy on reaching an agreement with SEA.
 
2. Read the Frequently Asked Questions document linked here to understand leaves and accommodations.
3. Read the latest SPS counter to SEA’s proposal here. Note how SPS responded by crossing out almost everything related to informing families, educators, and students about how to safely return. Also, check out the side-by-side comparisons of SEA and SPS's proposals regarding Health & Safety, Accommodations, Leaves, and Benefits, and Cohorting. Please discuss and share the side-by-side comparisons with your colleagues and families from your school and beyond. Feel free to post links on your social media. Send your questions and comments to [email protected].
From the Bargaining Table

SEA continues to bargain in good faith to meet the needs of our school community. Unfortunately, SPS is not a willing, collaborative, or trustworthy partner in this work. The District has chosen to use heavy-handed tactics instead of bargaining in good faith with SEA or respecting the voices of educators.
 
Thursday night, the Seattle School Board voted on a resolution that newly designated many special education and preschool educators as “essential” in an effort to order them to return to buildings in a bad faith end-run around the safety negotiation process. The District is using this change in designation to attempt to unilaterally implement their proposed changes of instructional model and order these staff back into buildings on March 8, with students returning March 11. This contradicts what Chief Codd and Superintendent Juneau have said over the past six months acknowledging the requirement for the District to bargain over these changes.
Watch and listen to how Chief Codd and Superintendent Juneau clearly explain how any change to the instructional model must be negotiated and mutually agreed to by SEA labor partners before implementation in this video.
Sunday, SEA filed three Unfair Labor Practice charges against SPS for shortcutting the bargaining process and violating their mutual agreement by attempting to order educators back to classrooms before reaching an adequate safety agreement. We intend to continue using every legal avenue to hold the district accountable to its agreements and the safety needs of its students and staff.
 
Tonight, the SEA Board of Directors will be meeting to discuss our collective response to this attack on our union. Our immediate goals are (1) Superintendent Juneau rescind her decision to “essentialize” educators and (2) SPS bargaining team refocus their energy on the current negotiations with SEA to reach a good faith agreement over the proposed changes to the instructional model.
 
We will send an update to Association Reps by Tuesday morning and likely call a special Representative Assembly Wednesday evening to discuss and potentially approve any recommendations of the SEA Board.
How to Stay Connected:
The 2019-2022 Contracts are posted on the SEA Website!