SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — About 6,000 public schoolteachers in San Francisco went on strike Monday, the city's first such walkout in nearly 50 years.
The strike comes after teachers and the district failed to reach an agreement over higher wages, health benefits, and more resources for students with special needs. The San Francisco Unified School District closed all 120 of its schools and said it would offer independent study to some of its 50,000 students.
“We will continue to stand together until we win the schools our students deserve and the contracts our members deserve," Cassondra Curiel, president of the United Educators of San Francisco, said at a Monday morning news conference.
Teachers with the union were joining the picket line after last-ditch negotiations over the weekend failed to reach a new contract. Mayor Daniel Lurie and Democratic U.S. Rep. Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco had urged the two sides to keep talking rather than shut down schools.
Union members planned a Monday afternoon rally at San Francisco City Hall. Negotiations were scheduled to resume around midday.
“We look forward to receiving the union's counteroffer,” said San Francisco Unified School District Superintendent Maria Su. She told reporters on Monday that the district had put forward a comprehensive package despite entrenched financial difficulties.
“This is a viable offer. It is an offer that we can afford,” Su said. “We will be at the table and we will stay for as long as it takes to get to a full agreement. I do not want a prolonged strike.”
Lily Perales, a history teacher at Mission High School, said many union members can’t afford to live in San Francisco anymore.
“Too many of my colleagues have been pushed out of the city because of the high cost of living, and with our current contract it’s not enough,” she said from a picket line Monday. “We’re willing to be on strike until all of our demands are met.”
Her colleague Aaron Hart, a photography and media arts teacher at Mission High, said schools are understaffed. “That’s why we’re out here. We just really want stability for our students,” he said.
The union and the district have been negotiating for nearly a year, with teachers demanding fully funded family health care, salary raises and the filling of vacant positions impacting special education and services.
The teachers also want the district to enact policies to support homeless and immigrant students and families.
The union is asking for a 9% raise over two years, which would mean an additional $92 million per year for the district. They say that money could come from reserve funds that could be directed back to classrooms and school sites.
SFUSD, which faces a $100 million deficit and is under state oversight because of a long-standing financial crisis, rejected the idea. Officials countered with a 6% wage increase paid over three years. Su said the offer also includes bonuses for all employees if there is a surplus by the 2027-28 school year.
A report by a neutral fact-finding panel released last week recommended a compromise of a 6% increase over two years, largely siding with the district’s arguments that it is financially constrained.
The union said San Francisco teachers receive some of the lowest contributions to their health care costs in the Bay Area, pushing many to leave. Su said the district offered two options: the district paying 75% of family health coverage to the insurance provider Kaiser or offering an annual allowance of $24,000 for teachers to choose their health care plan.
Lurie, who helped broker an agreement that ended a hotel workers union strike after he was elected and before taking office, said that the city agencies were coordinating with the district on how to offer support to children and their families.
“I know everyone participating in these negotiations is committed to schools where students thrive and our educators feel truly supported, and I will continue working to ensure that,” Lurie said in a social media post Sunday.
Teachers in other major California cities were also preparing to strike. San Diego teachers indicated they're ready to walk off the job next month for the first time in 30 years over a stalemate with the school district about special education staffing and services. And members of United Teachers Los Angeles voted overwhelmingly last month to authorize their leadership to call a strike if negotiations with the LA Unified School District fall apart.
A similar strike-authorization vote by the school system’s other largest union, Local 99 of Service Employees International Union, is scheduled to begin next week.
Associated Press reporter Christopher Weber contributed from Los Angeles.
Teachers picket in front of Mission High School in San Francisco on Monday, Feb. 9, 2026. (Brontë Wittpenn/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)
Teachers picket in front of Mission High School in San Francisco on Monday, Feb. 9, 2026. (Brontë Wittpenn/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)
FILE - A pedestrian walks past a San Francisco Unified School District office building in San Francisco, Feb. 3, 2022. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, file)
LONDON (AP) — Buckingham Palace said Monday that King Charles III will “support’’ UK police assessing reports that the former Prince Andrew gave confidential information to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The statement came after police said they were examining reports that the former prince, now known as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, sent trade reports to Epstein in 2010.
Thames Valley Police, which serves areas west of London, including the ex-royal’s former home in Windsor, launched the inquiry after news organizations reported on emails that suggest the then-prince sent Epstein reports from a 2010 tour of Southeast Asia he took as Britain’s envoy for international trade.
“The King has made clear, in words and through unprecedented actions, his profound concern at allegations which continue to come to light in respect of Mr. Mountbatten-Windsor’s conduct,’’ the palace said in a statement.
“While the specific claims in question are for Mr Mountbatten-Windsor to address, if we are approached by Thames Valley Police we stand ready to support them as you would expect.’’
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.
LONDON (AP) — British police said they were examining claims that the former Prince Andrew sent confidential trade reports to Jeffrey Epstein, as Prince William’s office said he was “deeply concerned’’ about the revelations coming out of the U.S. investigation into the late sex offender.
Thames Valley Police, which serves areas west of London, including the ex-royal’s former home in Windsor, launched the inquiry after news organizations reported on emails that suggest the then-prince sent Epstein reports from a 2010 tour of Southeast Asia he took as Britain’s envoy for international trade.
An anti-monarchy campaigner said he reported the former prince for suspected misconduct in public office and breaches of Britain’s Official Secrets Act as a result of the emails, which were among the more than 3 million pages of documents released last month by the U.S. Justice Department.
“We can confirm receipt of this report and are assessing the information in line with our established procedures,” the police force said in a statement.
King Charles III last year stripped his 65-year-old brother of his royal titles after earlier revelations about his relationship with Epstein. The former prince, now known simply as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, has denied all wrongdoing in relation to Epstein.
The royal family on Monday continued its effort to insulate itself from the scandal, as Prince William and Princess Catherine issued their first statement about the documents released by the U.S. The files reveal the web of rich, powerful people Epstein used to exploit young women and girls, and show that Mountbatten-Windsor’s close relationship with Epstein continued even after the financier was convicted of soliciting a minor for prostitution in 2008.
“I can confirm that the Prince and Princess of Wales have been deeply concerned by the continued revelations,’’ a spokesperson said as William traveled to Saudi Arabia for an official visit. “Their thoughts remain focused on the victims.”
The jeopardy faced by the royal family could be seen Monday when King Charles visited Lancashire, in northwest England. While most of the public clapped, cheered and waved British flags, one person shouted, “How long have you known about Andrew?”
Correspondence unearthed in recent days, as reporters continue to comb through the documents, appear to show that Mountbatten-Windsor forwarded copies of his reports from a 2010 tour of Southeast Asia to Epstein soon after he returned to Britain. An earlier email appears to show Andrew sharing his itinerary for the two-week trip to Hanoi, Saigon, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and Hong Kong with Epstein.
The king last week forced Mountbatten-Windsor to leave his longtime home at Royal Lodge near Windsor Castle, accelerating a move that was first announced in October but wasn’t expected to be completed until later this year. Anger over Mountbatten-Windsor’s living arrangements had grown amid concern that he was still reaping rewards from his status as a royal even though he is no longer a working member of the royal family.
Mountbatten-Windsor is now living on the king’s Sandringham estate in eastern England. He will live temporarily at Wood Farm Cottage while his permanent home on the estate undergoes repairs. Unlike Royal Lodge, which is owned by the crown and managed for the benefit of taxpayers, Sandringham is owned privately by the king.
Charles and Queen Camilla, who has long campaigned against violence against women, haven’t commented directly on the newly released Epstein files, with Buckingham Palace instead referring the media to a statement the royal couple made last year as the scandal began to accelerate.
“Their Majesties wish to make clear that their thoughts and utmost sympathies have been, and will remain with, the victims and survivors of any and all forms of abuse,’’ Buckingham Palace said in a statement released on Oct. 30, when the king announced that Andrew would be stripped of his titles.
Thames Valley Police began its inquiry after Graham Smith, chief executive of the anti-monarchy group Republic, reported Mountbatten-Windsor for suspected abuse of public office and violations of Britain’s Official Secrets Act.
Smith, whose group seeks to replace the king with an elected head of state, compared Mountbatten-Windsor’s correspondence with Epstein to earlier revelations about Peter Mandelson, Britain’s former ambassador to the U.S., who is already the subject of a police investigation into whether he shared sensitive information with Epstein. Those communications were also revealed in the Justice Department documents.
“I cannot see any significant difference between these allegations and those against Peter Mandelson,” Smith said on social media.
Britain's Prince William and Kate, Princess of Wales meet Archbishop of Canterbury Dame Sarah Mullally at Lambeth Palace, London, Thursday Feb. 5, 2026. (Aaron Chown/Pool Photo via AP)
A document that was included in the U.S. Department of Justice release of the Jeffrey Epstein files, photographed Monday, Feb. 9, 2026, shows an email to Epstein. (AP Photo/Jon Elswick)
A document that was included in the U.S. Department of Justice release of the Jeffrey Epstein files, photographed Monday, Feb. 9, 2026, shows an email to Epstein. (AP Photo/Jon Elswick)
FILE - Britain's Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly known as Prince Andrew, looks round as he leaves after attending the Easter Matins Service at St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, England, April 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, File)
