Massive strike shutters LAUSD as a sea of workers seeking higher wages rallies downtown

The start of a massive three-day strike led by the lowest paid public school workers and supported by teachers shut down Los Angeles campuses Tuesday amid a fierce morning storm, sent parents scrambling for child care and meals and brought thousands of picketers to campuses and a boisterous afternoon rally downtown. Max Arias, executive director of Local 99, said the decision to walk off the job was the “workers’ last resort” after almost a year of bargaining for better wages. “If LAUSD truly values and is serious about reaching an agreement, they must show workers the respect they deserve.” In the 5 a.m darkness, when bus drivers typically begin their day, hundreds of district employees joined the picket line at the Los Angeles Unified School District’s Van Nuys bus yard, marching in rain ponchos and balancing signs with umbrellas. “And it’s sad that I have to get up today in the rain to fight for respect because the district doesn’t understand what I and so many others do.” Pay for aides who work with special education students starts at around $19 an hour, and they can earn up to about $24 an hour working six hours a day. “Of course, we want our kids in school, but it’s not sustainable,” said Tynan, executive director of the labor-aligned advocacy organization Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy.