More than 3,000 Oakland teachers to go on strike Thursday after no deal reached with school district

OAKLAND, Calif. (KGO) -- After seven days of bargaining with the school district and no deal reached, the Oakland teachers union announced they will go ahead with their planned strike starting on Thursday. More than 3,000 teachers will participate in the strike.

The Oakland Education Association, or OEA, tweeted Wednesday evening saying that the district has been missing in action at the bargaining table.

Hundreds of strike signs are ready to go on the picket lines as the Oakland Unified School District notified parents Wednesday night that teachers will go ahead with their planned strike.

"I don't know what's going on but I'm not bringing my children to school tomorrow because there are conflicting messages," said Louise Bracy.

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Schools will be open according to the district, but Bracy says she's not bringing her daughter or her niece to school. She made the decision before that district note even went out.

"There may be teachers, there may not. They're asking for parents to come volunteer but then they're sending messages saying don't volunteer yet, so I'm just going to keep mine with me," said Bracy.

Oakland Unified says Central Office staff have been assigned to serve at schools to ensure students are safe. The teacher's union says OUSD has failed to come to the table in good faith.

Parents we spoke with brought up teacher pay, specifically starting teacher pay which could be increased to slightly above $60,000.

"At the end of the day, everybody has to start somewhere but you do have to be able to, number one - pay your bills and it's a very expensive area to live in," said Veronica Smith who has a daughter in third grade.

MORE: Oakland school board rejects proposed resolutions to cut budget, lay off staff

Earlier this week, at least one parent we spoke with was vocal against any strike saying kids are behind after COVID closures and the 2019 strike.

"If you have a salary dispute, dispute that on the side but do your contract," said parent of three Reginald Mosley.

Parents picking up their children Wednesday afternoon say they stand with educators and support a short strike.

"If we were talking about months-long or extended periods, I think that is concerning however I think a couple of days is something that we can figure out as a community," said Smith.

"I support the teachers 100%. I don't think it's their fault. I'm really considering home schooling actually because the school shootings and this stuff - it's just too much," said Bracy.

The Oakland Unified School District issued this statement Wednesday night:

After seven long days and nights of bargaining, the Oakland Education Association (OEA) has decided to go ahead with their planned strike starting tomorrow, Thursday, May 4.

While we do not know how long the strike will last, we continue to bargain with OEA in an effort to reach an agreement. The end of the school year is always filled with milestone events for our students, so we want to ensure regular school resumes as soon as possible.

Schools will be open, but it will not be a typical school day as teachers are key to any instructional program. They will be on strike and not in classrooms.

Central office staff have been assigned to serve at schools to ensure students are safe. Please be aware of communication coming from your school and principal this evening and tomorrow, as they will be providing specific site instructions.

For families, we have put together this document to share important information in multiple languages in case of a strike. You may have been notified about "solidarity schools" opening up during the strike. These are not OUSD sanctioned schools.

Thank you for your patience and understanding as we work through this process.

The Oakland Education Association issued this statement Wednesday night:

"OUSD has failed to come to the table in good faith. Oakland educators will be on the picket lines tomorrow, on strike for our students and for Oakland schools. Join us on the picket line and at our rally. We will continue to negotiate in good faith, and we hope the district does the same."

More stories on the Oakland teacher strike here.