San Francisco teachers, district reach deal to end first strike in decades

San Francisco teachers and the school district reached a tentative agreement Friday to end the city’s first teacher strike in nearly 50 years, with schools set to reopen for students on Wednesday following the Presidents Day and Lunar New Year holiday weekend.

The four-day strike, which began Monday, had shuttered all 120 schools in the San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD), affecting approximately 50,000 students. During the closure, the district offered limited independent study options for students.

Under the two-year tentative deal, teachers will receive the equivalent of a 5% raise over two years. In what union leaders are calling a major victory, the district has also agreed to provide fully-funded healthcare for dependents beginning January 1, 2027.

“This is truly monumental,” said SFUSD Superintendent Maria Su. “For the first time in our school district’s history, we are providing full family health benefits.”

Healthcare costs had been a central issue in the dispute. According to the United Educators of San Francisco (UESF), teachers in the district receive some of the lowest healthcare contributions in the Bay Area, with many paying upwards of $1,200 monthly for family coverage. The union argued these costs were forcing experienced educators to leave the district, contributing to staffing instability.

The agreement must still be ratified by both the San Francisco Board of Education and a majority of union members before becoming official.

Beyond compensation and healthcare, the agreement addresses several other key concerns raised by teachers. The union secured additional protections for immigrant students, including staff training on handling federal immigration enforcement situations. The district also agreed not to use artificial intelligence as a replacement for teachers—a forward-looking provision that reflects growing concerns about technology’s impact on education jobs.

“By forcing SFUSD to invest in fully funded family healthcare, special education workloads, improved wages, sanctuary and housing protections for San Francisco families, we’ve made important progress towards the schools our students deserve,” said UESF President Cassondra Curiel. “This contract is a strong foundation for us to continue to build the safe and stable learning environments our students deserve.”

The agreement represents a compromise from the union’s initial demands, which included a 9% raise over two years—a package that would have cost the district an additional $92 million annually. Union leaders had argued this funding could come from district reserve funds.

However, SFUSD, which is currently operating under state oversight due to a long-standing financial crisis and faces a $100 million deficit, maintained it could not meet those demands. The district had countered with a 6% wage increase spread over three years. According to Superintendent Su, funding for the family health plans will come from a special parcel tax.

A neutral fact-finding panel had previously recommended a 6% salary increase over two years, largely siding with the district’s position that financial constraints limited its ability to offer more substantial raises.

The strike resolution in San Francisco comes as teacher labor actions are brewing in other major California cities. In Los Angeles, teachers recently voted overwhelmingly to authorize their leadership to call a strike if negotiations with the Los Angeles Unified School District break down. Meanwhile, teachers in San Diego reached an agreement with their district on Friday, averting what would have been their first strike in 30 years over issues related to special education staffing and services.

The San Francisco agreement concludes nearly a year of negotiations between the district and the union, bringing relief to thousands of families affected by the school closures while addressing some of the long-standing concerns of the city’s educators about compensation, benefits, and working conditions.