8-30-2018
SEATTLE, Wash. — More teachers are voting to strike following the so-called “McCleary fix” that added more than $1 billion for teacher salaries and required wage negotiations across all school districts in the state.
More than 75,000 students in southwestern Washington will wait a while longer to start school after contract negotiations failed, while both Seattle and Mount Vernon voted to strike if a deal isn’t reached before school starts.
Seattle Public Schools Superintendent Denise Junea thinks the teachers deserve more money.
“We value the work that our educators do and we want to make sure that they are provided an adequate and competent salary,” she says.
Local teachers’ unions say districts now have the money to give teachers competitive salaries, but the Washington State School Directors’ Association stresses that not all districts are getting the same amount of money.
The WSSDA also notes that while state funding increases, local funding will decrease and schools have to determine salaries that are sustainable.