CV Teachers Association, CVUSD Teachers Take Action on Pay Inequity, Teacher Shortages

Frustrated teachers with the Coachella Valley Teachers Association are saying they will only be working contractually paid hours at school sites beginning tomorrow.

This organized action is meant to direct attention towards CVUSD’s failure to pay a competitive wage to retain qualified staff across all schools in the district.

There are two main points of concern the Coachella Valley Teachers Association is highlighting: salary inequity leaving positions unfilled and the Coachella pay gap needing to be closed.

At the start of this school year, there were more than 50 teacher vacancies and CVUSD still has at least 35 unfilled teaching positions.

CVTA says when teaching positions go unfilled, students are either placed in combination classes, which are usually out of grade and instructional level, or students have rotating substitute teachers throughout the year.

On top of saying how this affects the entire school environment, CVTA President Carissa Carrera explained the association’s frustration, saying, "Why would Palm Springs or Desert Sands bother running induction [beginning teacher training] programs when they can simply wait for Coachella to do that work, then offer offer our teachers to transfer? That’s not a sustainable model for CVUSD."

According to the teacher’s association, Desert Sands and Palm Springs Unified School Districts are currently offering higher salaries than Coachella Valley.

And unlike CVUSD, both of those districts started the year fully staffed.

By shining a light on Coachella Valley teachers who work outside of their regular workday, the teacher’s association hopes the community will join them in their efforts to close the Coachella pay gap and end years of teacher losses to other districts who do pay fair wages.

The teachers association is inviting parents, teachers and the community to attend the next school board meeting this Thursday at 5:15 p.m.