For Lourdes Lopez, a mother of three, a Los Angeles Unified School District strike could mean three days of lost wages, an emptier fridge and a whole lot of stress.
The district and Los Angeles city will work together to offer more than 100 student supervision sites and food giveaways at schools and parks during the strike. But Lopezsaid she isn’t comfortable dropping off her children at one of these sites — and she isn’t alone.
With LAUSD’s classified staff set to strike on Tuesday, many parents — particularly those who are low-income, or whose children speak English as a second language or have special needs — say they are worried that these supervision sites won’t be able to properly care for their students.
Lopez, for example, has two children with special needs. Her youngest daughter, Alison, has Down syndrome and her son, Dylan, has ADHD. They are both English language learners with individualized education plans who need specialized attention – something Lourdes isn’t confident these supervision centers will provide.
And, even if her children didn’t have special needs, she doesn’t have access to transportation to her local South L.A. supervision site.
Now, Lopez must decide between going to work and making sure her children are safely taken care of.
Lopez is among many low-income parents across LA who must make tough decisions to support their families during the anticipated three-day strike.
So will the workers on strike. After all, their own financial instability is the leading reason for the three day walkout.
“We are deeply aware of the impacts our planned strike has on working families,” said SEIU Local 99 Executive Director Max Arias. “Many SEIU Local 99 members are also parents of LAUSD students. The poverty faced by the families we serve is a lived reality for us too.”
Service Employees International Union, Local 99, represents 30,000 service workers at LAUSD, including bus drivers, custodians, special education…
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