03/15/11 07:50 PM 
Read More: California Teachers Association, California-Teacher-Layoffs, Education Budget Cuts, Jerry Brown, Teacher Jobs, Teacher Layoffs, Teacher's Union, Teachers, Teachers Unions, Education News
SAN BRUNO, Calif. — School districts in California have issued nearly 19,000 layoff notices so far to teachers amid uncertainty over the state budget, the California Teachers Association estimated Tuesday.
The union announced its estimate of preliminary notices on the day school districts must let employees know they could lose their jobs.
Some districts had yet to fully report how many warnings had been distributed as they prepare for worst-case budget scenarios. The union said it expects to have a final count Friday.
Its early estimate includes almost 500 school employees in San Francisco, 540 in Oakland, nearly 900 in San Diego, and about 5,000 educators in Los Angeles.
The situation is not unique to California. School districts throughout the country are warning of cutbacks involving teacher and other employees, as state legislatures seek to close massive budget shortfalls by cutting education spending.
Not all of the estimated layoffs will be carried out in California.
Schools have until May 15 to issue final layoff notices. Two years ago, districts handed out layoff notices to a record 26,500 teachers, but only 60 percent of them ended up losing their jobs.
Meanwhile, teachers and parents rallied around the state Tuesday to drum up support for Gov. Jerry Brown's budget proposal.
Brown's plan for closing the state's nearly $27 billion budget deficit seeks to maintain current K-12 spending levels by asking voters to extend temporary increases in the sales, personal income and vehicle taxes for five years.
