MADERA, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – Teachers picketed across Madera Unified campuses today to raise awareness about low wages and the retention crisis. This comes after the Madera Unified Teachers Association (MUTA) and the district failed to agree on a new contract.
From a statement sent to us by the district, the MUTA is asking for a nearly $10,000 increase to the staff’s base salary. The district’s final offer, however, is just about half of that. “The district has let it be known to us that we’re not their priority. We haven’t been their priority for many years,” stated MUTA’s President David Holder.
Because MUTA and the district could not come to an agreement, their contract ended back in June. “Currently, Madera salary schedules for educators is 14th out of 14 in the comparable districts in this area,” Holder shared. Holder says new Madera Unified teachers could make nearly $10,000 more if they started at a similar district in the area…