In February, the small but mighty McFarland Teachers Association (MTA) successfully bargained a contract with their district that helps retain great teachers, attracts new and experienced teachers, and improves working conditions so that educators have the time and resources to do their job.

The executive board of MTA, which has approximately 160 members, started their contract campaign in 2023. The local used a series of CTA organizing grants to identify members’ key issues, plan strategically, make critical site visits, engage members in one-on-one conversations and formulate a thoughtful plan of action.

“I was able to go to every site and meet with members. I was able to get commitments from members and get a temperature check on how people felt about negotiations.”

—MTA President Kim Whealy-Kennemer

Specifically, MTA received a site visit grant, which provided release time to conduct a site visit program, and a planning grant, which covered release time/meeting expenses for chapter representatives’ full day to work. (The work took place in Spring and Fall 2023, respectively.) MTA President Kim Whealy-Kennemer also received a local president release time grant in 2023.

“I was able to go to every site and “I was able to go to every site and meet with members,” said Whealy-Kennemer. “I was able to get commitments from members and get a temperature check on how people felt about negotiations — we went to impasse, then fact-finding but were able to reach a fair settlement by returning to a second round of mediation.”

MTA President Kim Whealy-Kennemer, at left, on the line.

MTA’s organizing plan touched all members, making them feel seen and invested in their union. MTA’s actions, which included a rally, demonstrated educators’ collective power at a critical point in negotiations and propelled them to a settlement during impasse mediation.

Whealy-Kennemer credits CTA with important assistance. “CTA helped create strategy and an organizing team, which included a couple people from our negotiations team as well as some of our up-and-comers who will eventually lead the union.”

Whealy-Kennemer, who has been MTA president since 2018, has been approved for a president’s release time grant again next year. She and MTA hope to develop strategies to retain educators and engage them more fully in union work. MTA has 174 educators in its bargaining unit, of which 91% are members. But retention is a big problem.

“Our population has 30–40 people who are new; only 58% stay beyond three or four years,” she said. “Every year we have to re-recruit.”

But she is excited about newer educators’ contributions to MTA and optimistic about their long-term impact. “Our organizing team has benefited tremendously from the younger people in our union. They have energy, and the audacity to question things that [veteran educators] accept as ‘normal.’ We need the blend, we have to trust that they can build this power.”

What MTA Won

Among the gains in the new contract:

• 4% on the salary schedule (ongoing) retroactive to July 1, 2023 (from 2% on schedule)
• 1.5% on the salary schedule (ongoing) beginning July 1, 2024
• Health & welfare fully covered for years 23–24 and 24–25
• Longevity will begin at 10 years at $1,000 with an additional $500 every 5 years

CTA Organizing Grants

Local leaders can visit cta.org to learn more about CTA grants. Among the grants:

• Site Visit grants, which cover release time for local unions to conduct local
  site visits; these visits should center around local priorities such as asking unit
  members to join the union, preparing for bargaining and organizing to win a
  strong contract, school board elections, a community schools campaign, etc.
• Planning grants, which cover release time or meeting expenses for local
  executive boards to hold a local planning session
• Local President Release Time grants, for local presidents to lead and carry out site-based organizing within their chapter; release time is by formula, depending on individual’s existing release time, and have benefited many chapters.