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As tensions persist between the Livermore school district and teachers’ union over wages and benefits, district officials maintain that they have made a “strong offer” amid funding challenges.
However, the Livermore Education Association — representing educators, nurses, counselors, speech pathologists and social workers — filed a one-sided impasse in negotiations over the two contract articles following the union’s verbal declaration Oct. 2. A mediator was assigned Nov. 14 to help work through the impasse.
In response to ongoing talks regarding district finances as well as employee compensation, Superintendent Torie Gibson emailed LVJUSD staff and district families last Friday (Nov. 7) to address budgeting as well as the district’s ability to offer raises.
But the letter landed poorly with a portion of the community, some of whom expressed their discontent at the Livermore Valley Joint Unified School District Board of Education meeting Nov. 12.
“Our goal remains clear: to provide fair and sustainable compensation increases that keep LVJUSD fiscally strong for years to come,” Gibson wrote Nov. 7. “We deeply value the dedication of our staff and the trust of our community and we remain committed to transparency, collaboration and responsible stewardship of public funds.”
“If this administration spent half as much time solving the problem as they do making excuses, we would not be at impasse,” LEA President Aimee Thompson said at the Nov. 12 meeting.
LEA is seeking for its members a 4.75% salary increase as well as an additional $3,500 in annual district contributions to individuals’ health benefits, Thompson said at the meeting.
The union aims to receive overall compensation — wages plus benefits — ranking in the top quartile when compared to 10 neighboring districts, Thompson explained. Instead, LVJUSD teachers come in at 9th out of 11 in overall compensation, Thompson said.
Meanwhile, district employees including LEA members are facing heightened healthcare premiums.
“While rising health care costs are not exclusive to our district nor our industry, they have contributed to reduced take-home compensation for employees,” district officials acknowledged to Livermore Vine.
“Despite our financial constraints, we have made a strong offer to help offset rising health care costs, a major concern brought forth by LEA members,” Gibson wrote to the community.
According to district officials, they have offered ongoing increases of $3,000 to be applied toward full-time employee benefits starting in the 2025–26 school year and an additional ongoing increase of $1,250 to be applied toward full-time employee benefits starting in the 2026–27 school year. They have also offered contract reopener language over salary and benefit for 2026-27 under select conditions.
Meanwhile, LVJUSD must reduce its budget by $600,000 in 2026-27 to maintain the state’s 3% minimum reserve requirement through 2027-28, according to a review by the Alameda County Office of Education.
However, LEA declared an impasse because there was “no foreseeable path to an acceptable compensation agreement,” representatives wrote on the union website.
One point of contention between negotiating parties is the method to measure the district funding available for compensation increases.
Upon combining restricted and unrestricted income, LVJUSD receives the most overall funding per student ($16,812) compared to nearby school districts such as Pleasanton Unified ($16,036), Fremont Unified ($16,072), Dublin Unified ($16,109) and San Ramon Valley Unified ($16,524).
However, restricted funds are tied to grants or special programs and services that cannot be used for overall compensation increases, Gibson said.
To ensure that compensation increases are sustainable, unrestricted funding per student is the “true measure of available, flexible resources,” Gibson added.
Upon measuring unrestricted income per student, LVJUSD ranks last ($12,719) among the four other districts: Pleasanton Unified ($12,870), Fremont Unified ($13,036), San Ramon Valley Unified ($13,076) and Dublin Unified ($13,392).
Unrestricted income per student can vary from year-to-year based on overall enrollment as well as the number of students who qualify for additional state funding based on criteria such as household income levels, district officials explained.
Currently the district is projected to face continued declining enrollment, a trend that would negatively impact the district’s receipt of unrestricted income. LVJUSD has also received fewer reports of household income than previous years, when it was likely inflated, district officials said.
While often compared to neighboring districts of Pleasanton and Dublin, there are “several key differences that significantly affect the funding reserves available for employee compensation”, Gibson explained.
School districts in Pleasanton and Dublin both receive Economic Recovery Target funding from the state worth $5 million annually, whereas LVJUSD does not receive the funds, she explained.
According to Gibson, LVJUSD also has more schools, a higher rate of students receiving special education services as well as more teachers and paraeducators in comparison to Pleasanton and Dublin school districts — several of the points were in dispute at the Nov. 12 meeting.
During the meeting, Thompson expressed frustration over the district’s response to union requests, alleging that many replies have been excuses.
“The latest excuse emailed by Gibson to all staff and all parents last Friday is that restricted funds cannot be used on compensation,” Thompson said at the meeting.
Rather, the district spent over $61 million of restricted funds on compensation during the 2024-25 school year, Thompson said.
“Please stop wasting time and money on excuses,” she added. “Do your job — reprioritize the budget to provide a reasonably competitive compensation package.”
Thompson was not alone in voicing her displeasure Nov. 12 over the approach to addressing teacher compensation.
Ahead of the board meeting, over 20 teachers, parents and community members wrote letters to the board requesting higher compensation for educators.
LEA members and supporters also gathered outside the district office ahead of the meeting with the same request.
Among the approximately 20 speakers who expressed their support for the teachers’ union during public comment Nov. 12, LEA Vice President Tara Lutz urged the district to find and implement a plan for the compensation increase.
“It seems you are desperate to save face, but that’s not what we need our leadership to spend their time and energy on right now,” Lutz said. “We need that same focus spent on problem-solving the fact that we are grossly underpaid in contrast to where we live and what we do.”
Earlier this year, LVJUSD contracted independent state agency Fiscal Crisis and Management Assistance Team to review the district’s fiscal solvency, including its multiyear financial projection and cash flow, district officials said.
Negotiations continue to operate independently of the FCMAT review, district officials added.
“The intention was to have an unbiased, third party validate our district’s finances so that we could avoid the questioning of transparency when negotiating with our bargaining units,” according to district officials.
“Our goal is to provide compensation increases within our means of remaining fiscally solvent,” officials added.
Despite the district’s intention, concerns over FCMAT’s involvement arose at the board’s Oct. 14 regular meeting.
The superintendent was on the FCMAT board just prior to joining the district, which “fosters the perception that there exists a conflict of interest,” said Mamie Kristovich, president of the California School Employees Association, at the Oct. 14 meeting.
Gibson directly addressed the subject during the meeting, explaining that there was no pay directly associated with her former position at FCMAT.
The agency’s findings are set to be presented at the Dec. 9 board meeting.
Also during the Dec. 9 board meeting, district officials are set to present the 2025‑26 first interim report for approval. The report contains the district’s financial status including revenues, expenditures and reserves as well as projections for the next two years.
The report helps guide decisions and maintain fiscal stability throughout the year, district officials explained.
Following winter break, two budget advisory committees are also set to propose key initiatives of the district to the board for consideration and approval.
Nearing the end of the board meeting Nov. 12, Trustee Christiaan VandenHeuvel and President Emily Prusso expressed their interest in supporting teachers as well as financial sustainability.
“I care about our teachers, about our students and our community and I carry it home with me every time,” Prusso said. “I also recognize that there is a responsibility for today and there’s a responsibility for the years ahead and so that’s a balancing act that we have to figure out”.
“I think we’re going to be able to figure it out,” Prusso added.
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