Dear Teachers,
As you know, DCTA and DPS did not reach agreement in advance of the ProComp Agreement expiration and DCTA members have voted to approve a strike.
I want you to know that I hear you and I am listening -- to your emails, to your votes, and to so many of you who I have talked with in the last two weeks. Our teachers and SSPs are essential for our schools to be successful and I am grateful to our educators for all they do for our schools, our students and our community. I want you to know that I remain committed to returning to negotiations at any time.
Yesterday, we filed a
request for intervention with the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment
(CDLE) in order to help resolve the gaps between DPS and DCTA on our compensation system for teachers. The CDLE issued an order stating that DCTA has 10 days to respond to the DPS request. After DCTA responds, the CDLE will take up to 14 days to respond on whether or not they will intervene in the negotiations.
The DCTA issued a
public statement
, which states,
“Until the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment decides whether or not they will intervene, we are not able to strike. This means that DCTA bargaining unit members should report to work until we hear otherwise.”
Based on this order and the DCTA website, we do not anticipate that a strike will start this coming Monday, Jan. 28. Please see CDLE’s
fact sheet
for complete information on the process. A strike cannot occur while CDLE is deciding if it will intervene in the dispute. If CDLE decides not to intervene, a strike could begin as quickly as the next day.
I want to be clear on what this means and what it does not mean:
- Our negotiations team, of which I am a member, is eager to get back to work with the DCTA in order to come to an agreement that ensures our teachers and SSPs feel valued for the extraordinary work they do with our students.
- We are willing to immediately work with DCTA to reach an agreement so that the Department of Labor would not have to formally intervene.
- We are committed and motivated to engage in this hard work.
- If we cannot reach agreement by immediately returning to the table, we believe that we should exhaust every resource available to us, including state intervention, before we resort to a strike.
I know these are stressful times and I have seen and heard the passion you have for your students, your jobs and your profession. I came into this role with the intention to create a more authentic approach to collaboration and I am eager to prove that I mean it when I say that I want to make that a reality.
In the words of Margaret Mead, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.” I look forward to working with you and the DCTA in the coming weeks. Thank you for your continued service to our kids.
Warm Regards,
Susana
