Adolfo Guzman-Lopez
May 06, 2009
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L.A. Unified Superintendent Ramon Cortines says he's filing a complaint today with the state's Public Employee Relations Board to stop teachers from carrying out a one-day strike next week. KPCC's Adolfo Guzman-Lopez has more.

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Adolfo Guzman-Lopez: Last year, the teachers union organized a one-hour strike. Superintendent Cortines, then a deputy to the superintendent, defended the union's right to protest. He holds a different view of the union's planned one-day strike next week.

Ramon Cortines: I recommended to the board yesterday to file an injunction, that's fighting it.

Guzman-Lopez: At a news conference outside Fairfax High School, Cortines said the union's refusing to minimize the impact of a strike in protest of planned teacher layoffs. Cortines said early retirements and federal money are allowing him to withdraw layoff notices for 951 math and science teachers. Mike Stryer, the teachers' union rep at Fairfax High, said that's a start.

Mike Stryer: But remember we still have 2,000 or more teachers who have been given layoff notices. And we know the impact, larger class sizes. I have class sizes of 42, 43, 44 students, and it will go up from there.

Guzman-Lopez: The planned strike is a big deal, said Fairfax High principal Ed Zubiate.

Ed Zubiate: We would expect the juniors and seniors, a lot of them won't even come to school. They do that during a work stoppage. The 9th and 10th, most of them will come to school.

Guzman-Lopez: One of the problems at Fairfax, Zubiate said, is that most students would be sent to the school's auditorium. But it's under renovation.