Teacher Strikes

It must be a new school year. There are teachers on the picket line.

WASHINGTON
On August 22, the Seattle Times urged, "Don't Strike, Teachers".
It's illegal in Washington for teachers to strike. Bellevue School District, teachers voted in June to strike on Sept. 2 — the first day of school — if a tentative contract is not agreed to by then. Similar rumblings emanate from the Snoqualmie and Northshore school districts.

Teachers and other school employees received an 8.1 percent pay raise over the current biennium. Last year they received a 3.7 percent increase, this year it is 4.4 percent.

Sept 2 - School's out in Bellevue as teachers hit picket lines, canceling school for 16,000 students.

PENNSYLVANIA
Sept 2 - In Tuscarora, Pennsylvania, teachers are on strike. The district has approximately 165 teachers and 2,700 students. State Rep. Todd Rock (R) sponsored legislation called the “strike-free education pact.” The bill went to the labor relations committee in July 2007 and has not emerged from that committee for a vote.

Souderton Area School District (PA)
Sept 2 - A teacher's strike began yesterday after teachers and the school board failed to reach an agreement on health care plans among other things. They're asking for a four-year deal with an average pay increase of 8 percent.