South County teachers union approves strike after impasse in bargaining

The union for a South County school district announced late Wednesday that teachers had authorized a strike.

The strike vote comes after 20 months of negotiations, according to the union, which have resulted in an impasse with the South Bay Union School District.

Teachers’ unions across the state have been in similar struggles with other districts. In San Diego Unified School District, the union announced a one-day strike while negotiations were ongoing.

The Southwest Teachers Association, which represents teachers in South Bay Union School District, does not yet have a start date for its strike.

Norma Sahagun, bargaining chair and special education teacher for moderate to severe disability, said the district is prioritizing management over teachers and students.

“It’s not a money problem,” she said. “It’s just a budget problem, and a priorities problem.”

She is a special education teacher and said the district is losing special education teachers to districts with better compensation.

“Our students are now being impacted by not having those qualified teachers,” she said.

She said the two sides have spent 20 months negotiating for a one-year reopener for the 2024-25 school year. The unio...