Modesto teachers’ strike vote: your rights in a school strike

In California, K-12 teachers can generally strike only after the state’s impasse process is finished, or when a strike is provoked by an employer’s unfair practice. That is why the Modesto teachers’ scheduled strike vote does not itself start a strike. Here is how the process works and what a strike can mean for your job, pay, health coverage and unemployment benefits.

1. What happened

CBS Sacramento reported on Oct. 29, 2026, that the Modesto Teachers Association is preparing for a strike vote on Nov. 5 after a failed mediation round with Modesto City Schools. CBS said three mediation sessions have ended without a deal after more than a year of negotiations, with salaries and health care as the main disputes, and that a strike would be the first by Modesto teachers in nearly five decades.

Watch the CBS News Sacramento report: “After another failed mediation session, Modesto teachers set to vote on strike” (CBS News Sacramento, October 29, 2026)

According to CBS, the district says it has raised its offer since August, adding multiple 3% raises and more health care funding, and that its latest offer would double its family health care contribution by 2027. CBS reported that teachers are also seeking smaller class sizes and more special education support.

The Modesto Bee reported on Oct. 27, 2026, that the dispute is moving to factfinding. The Bee said the union’s president described a September preauthorization vote as “in the 90th percentile” and said “this is our third year without a salary increase.” The district told the Bee that its latest proposal includes a 3% raise retroactive to July 1, 2025, another 3% for 2026–27 and higher health contributions, and that it remains willing to meet. The union told the Bee that no strike date is set, that its goal is to settle, and that a strike cannot happen until the impasse process is complete.

These are the parties’ reported positions. We take no side, and the rest of this guide explains what California law generally provides.

Key dateNov. 5

---

2. How school bargaining works under EERA

EERA gives public school employees the right to form, join and take part in employee organizations of their choosing (Gov. Code §3543). It covers people employed by a public school employer, other than management, confidential and certain elected or appointed employees (§3540.1(j)).

Bargaining covers wages, hours and other listed terms, including health and welfare benefits, leave, safety conditions and class size (§3543.2). A district may not refuse to negotiate in good faith or refuse to take part in the impasse procedure in good faith (§3543.5(c), (e)). A union has parallel duties (§3543.6(c), (d)). See our guide to public employee rights in California.

---

3. The impasse process, step by step

Step	What the law provides	Statute
Impasse and mediation	Either side may declare impasse and ask PERB for a mediator. If PERB finds an impasse exists, it appoints one within five working days.	Gov. Code §3548
Request for factfinding	If mediation has not settled the dispute within 15 days of the mediator’s appointment and the mediator declares factfinding appropriate, either side may request it in writing.	§3548.1
The panel	Each side picks one member within five days. PERB then picks a chair within five days, unless the parties agree on someone else.	§3548.1
What the panel weighs	The employer’s financial ability, the public interest, comparable employees, the cost of living and total compensation, among other factors.	§3548.2
The report	If there is no settlement within 30 days of the panel’s appointment, or a longer agreed period, it issues findings and recommendations that are advisory only. The district must make them public within 10 days of receiving them.	§3548.3

Key fact

---

4. When a teacher strike is generally lawful

EERA does not contain an express ban on strikes. PERB has read it to provide a qualified right to strike, and a 2025 California appellate decision upheld PERB’s finding that a one-day teacher strike over unfair practices was lawful on its facts. In general:

• After the impasse process ends: PERB has called an economic strike after impasse procedures are exhausted statutorily protected, in decisions under the parallel local government law, subject to the limits below.
• Before the process ends: A strike is presumed to be an unlawful pressure tactic. A union can rebut that presumption by showing an employer’s unfair practice was a substantial cause of the strike.
• Limits at any stage: A strike may lose protection if it imminently and substantially threatens public health or safety, breaches an operative no-strike agreement, or lets employees keep the benefits of working while striking.

If a district believes a strike is unlawful, the California Supreme Court has held that PERB has exclusive initial jurisdiction to decide whether it is an unfair practice and what remedy to pursue, including whether to seek an injunction. See also our posts on the Santa Rosa nurses’ strike and the Orange County Teamsters’ strike.

---

5. Retaliation and protected activity

A school district may not retaliate against, threaten, discriminate against or otherwise coerce employees because they exercised EERA rights, and that protection extends to applicants (§3543.5(a)). Unions may not impose reprisals on employees for exercising those rights either (§3543.6(b)). Protection depends on the facts, including whether the strike itself was protected and how you behaved on the line.

The usual route is an unfair practice charge with PERB. The deadline is six months from the conduct, paused while you exhaust a contract grievance process that covers the matter (§3541.5). PERB can order reinstatement, with or without back pay. Other laws may also apply, such as Labor Code §1102.5 for reports of suspected legal violations, or FEHA if discipline falls differently based on a protected trait.

Deadlines differ, and some damages claims against public entities carry separate government-claim deadlines. A Labor Commissioner retaliation complaint generally must be filed within one year (see the Labor Commissioner’s retaliation page). See also our guide to retaliation claims in California.

---

6. Pay and health coverage during a strike

Generally, expect no pay for days you strike. PERB has described refusing to pay strikers for time not worked, including fringe benefits, as a permissible strike preparation, in a 1983 decision later overruled in part on other grounds. Pay already earned for days you worked is still owed.

Health coverage is less uniform. What happens depends on your contract, the health plan’s rules and how long the strike lasts, so ask before any walkout whether a missed work period affects the district’s contribution, whether the plan requires minimum hours or paid days, and whether you can pay the premium yourself.

If you lose coverage because of a reduction in hours, federal continuation coverage may be available for government-sponsored plans, generally for up to 18 months, usually at your own expense.

Hypothetical example. Dana, a middle school teacher, is planning for a possible two-week strike. Her family is on her plan, so she asks the benefits office in writing how a strike would affect the monthly contribution and saves the answer. If she later faces discipline for picketing, that record and her dated notes can help her union or a lawyer evaluate a charge.

---

7. Unemployment and trade disputes

Under Unemployment Insurance Code §1262, you are not eligible for benefits if you left work because of a trade dispute, and you stay ineligible while you remain out of work because the dispute is in active progress at your establishment. EDD says the section has no good cause exception, and union members can be bound by their representative’s actions. A 2023 bill to extend benefits to strikers was vetoed, and §1262 remains in effect.

Not every absence is treated the same. EDD says refusing to cross a purely informational picket line is analyzed under the voluntary quit rules instead, and bona fide later work can remove a disqualification. If a strike begins during approved leave, not returning when the leave ends is generally treated as leaving because of the dispute. EDD issues written determinations you can appeal. Its trade dispute procedures explain the process, and our post on unemployment after being fired covers other separations.

Deadline6 months

---

8. Classified staff and substitutes

Classified employees, such as aides, custodians, bus drivers and office staff, are often in a separate bargaining unit with their own contract. PERB has held, under the parallel local government law, that the right to strike can include sympathy strikes supporting another unit’s protected strike, and that employees may refuse to cross a picket line even if their own union has not called a sympathy strike. A union can waive sympathy-strike rights only through clear and unmistakable contract language, so read your no-strike clause closely. If you stay out to honor the line, §1262 may affect unemployment.

Substitutes can be EERA employees too. An older PERB decision says a district may hire substitutes to replace strikers. The union told the Bee that Modesto’s substitutes are in its bargaining unit, so the district cannot offer them higher pay to fill classrooms. In general, a district must give an exclusive representative notice and a chance to negotiate before changing terms for employees it represents (§3543.2). The union’s president also told the Bee that whether schools stay open and who supervises students is the district’s decision.

---

9. What to keep

• Your contract, including any no-strike clause, and your health plan booklet.
• Union and district notices about the strike.
• Pay stubs, benefit statements and dated notes of threats, schedule changes or discipline, with witnesses’ names.

---

Laws this article relies on

Law	What it does here
Gov. Code §3540 et seq. (EERA)	Bargaining rights for California public school employees
Gov. Code §§3548–3548.3	Impasse, mediation and advisory factfinding
Gov. Code §3543.5	Bars district retaliation and bad-faith bargaining
Gov. Code §3541.5	Six-month PERB charge deadline
Unemp. Ins. Code §1262	Trade dispute limit on unemployment benefits

News sources: CBS Sacramento (October 29, 2026); The Modesto Bee, via Yahoo News (October 27, 2026).

---

Frequently asked questions

Does a strike vote mean teachers are on strike?

No. A vote generally authorizes union leaders to call a strike; it does not start one.

Can I be fired for joining a lawful teacher strike?

EERA bars a district from retaliating for exercising protected rights, and PERB can order reinstatement. Protection depends on the facts, so talk to your union or a lawyer quickly.

Do I have to strike if my union calls one?

Union members should check their bylaws and ask their union about consequences. Unions may not impose reprisals on employees for exercising EERA rights.

Can I collect unemployment during a teacher strike?

Generally not if you left work because of the dispute and it remains in active progress. EDD decides each claim, and you can appeal.

---

Talk to a California employment lawyer

Employees First Labor Law represents workers exclusively. If you believe you faced retaliation connected to union activity or a strike, or lost pay you were owed, we offer free virtual consultations. Contact us or call (310) 853-3461.

This article is general information about California law as of 2026, not legal advice for your situation. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship.