UPDATE: Seattle Education Association says members voted to authorize strike if agreement’s not reached

12:07 PM: The Seattle Education Association has just announced that its members have voted to authorize a strike if no agreement is reached by tomorrow. The union says 75 percent of its 6,000 members voted, and that 95 percent of them voted to authorize a strike, But contract talks are still under way right now, they stress, so a strike is not yet a sure thing. Updates to come as their briefing continues.

12:10 PM: A member of the bargaining team joined the briefing for a moment to say, “We’re prepared to stay all night if that’s what it takes.” Union leaders did not take questions and ended the briefing after less than 10 minutes, noting again that they’re planning a rally at district HQ at 4:30 pm. The SEA contract expired August 31st. Tomorrow is the first scheduled day of classes for most Seattle Public Schools students.

1:26 PM: So far no word from either side so far on any kind of cutoff time for a decision on what happens tomorrow. We will of course update as soon as we hear anything.

4:42 PM: The district has announced no school tomorrow, though talks are continuing. We’re updating separately here.

JP September 6, 2022 (12:13 pm)

Love and Solidarity to our Seattle teachers and school staff! We’re bummed our kiddo won’t likely start tomorrow but teachers deserve infinitely better than what they’re currently getting.

Belvidear September 6, 2022 (12:20 pm)

Will class schedules still be posted today, does anyone know?

SPS Info September 6, 2022 (5:07 pm)

We received guidance from leadership to continue to block student schedule visibility until a new Start of School is decided on. Wish I had better news.

Kram September 6, 2022 (12:28 pm)

I feel for the kids and I feel for the teachers and I feel for the parents who can’t afford childcare last minute. Isn’t there a better way to do this?

ST September 6, 2022 (12:37 pm)

Even if SEA leadership tentatively agrees to a deal tonight, the teachers still need to ratify it. I just don’t see how that happens between now and tomorrow morning (although, maybe it’s possible if online voting to ratify is permissible under SEA bylaws). I think rank and file teachers want to be there tomorrow morning and there are definitely issues with class size and resources.
But, I hope union leadership is taking into account the learning deficits many of these students have endured during the pandemic and the challenges already faced by working parents trying to balance work with child care coverage, a delayed start to school just makes these matters worse. . I think in this tight labor market, workers in all industries are being asked to do more than they normally would. I hope they figure it out quickly

WSB September 6, 2022 (1:20 pm)

They would NOT necessarily need to ratify a contract before starting school. Example: The last SEA strike in 2015 ended with a decision to suspend the strike in advance of the ratification vote.
https://westseattleblog.com/2015/09/happening-now-union-meeting-in-south-park-to-review-tentative-agreement-decide-whether-to-suspend-strike/

Quiz September 6, 2022 (12:40 pm)

Seems like teachers may have taken the whole “quiet quitting” thing to heart… Jokes aside, I typically come down and the side of supporting teachers in any way possible. But choosing to authorize a strike is just insane after the past two years these kids have been through. Can we just have a year where they don’t feel like the rug is being pulled out from under them?

Anne September 6, 2022 (1:35 pm)

Students aren’t only ones who have been through tough times the last 2 years. Those that teach our children have as well-yet they’re expected to just bounce back still dealing with a lack of resources & larger class sizes – & basically expected to suck it up.
- Josh September 6, 2022 (3:57 pm)
  
  Nurses have it worse and we aren’t refusing to work. We show up and also fight for better conditions, it’s not mutually exclusive. I am tired of teachers whine about how bad they have it, others have it worse and still do right.
  - Not a nurse. Not a teacher. September 6, 2022 (5:29 pm)
    
    Actually this isn’t true. Nurses left union roles in droves to pursue travel nursing careers when talks fell apart here and around the country. I have no doubt that our medical professionals have had a heck of a time but I do want to expose a straw man argument when I see one.

Sam September 6, 2022 (12:44 pm)

I don’t get it. We have a democratically elected board that supervises the district and is accountable to voters. Why does SEA get a veto over policy? It’s not like a union in the private sector, where I don’t have to buy the company’s products. I have already paid for the schools, and an unelected body is deciding I don’t get services. It’s fascism.

MrsT September 6, 2022 (1:52 pm)

Please learn what fascism is.
- Sam September 6, 2022 (4:05 pm)
  
  An unelected group having veto power over democratic institutions?
North Admiral Resident September 6, 2022 (2:20 pm)

You don’t understand worker’s rights?
Rumbles September 6, 2022 (2:53 pm)

What’s not to get? Their contract is over, it’s time to negotiate a new one. As for being concerned about “what you’ve already paid for”, you will still get what you “paid for” after the contract negotiations are completed. 🤷🏻‍♂️
Kram September 6, 2022 (5:41 pm)

Sam; are you comparing a Seattle teacher strike and it’s politics to 1940’s Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany?

Smoosh September 6, 2022 (12:48 pm)

Shame on SEA for stalling and refusing to allow language that allows for the creation of a more inclusionary pathway for special education and pretending that their refusal to bargain in good faith or move to mediation once SPS identified that they were not bargaining in good faith. If SEA cared about working families and the kids they would have at least signed the MOU to allow the school to start as planned and continued bargaining. This is all about their raises and they will force us to find and pay for emergency childcare so they can get paid and continue to call out sick 20% of the time with no corrective recourse for such disruptive actions. Shame on them. Their tactics are shameful and obviously dishonest. Go to their web page and read their excuse making for the special Ed and mediation position and stop trusting anything they say.

sped teacher September 6, 2022 (1:36 pm)

Wow. Okay, so I am special education teacher eating my lunch and reading the blog and I have to say that everyone at my building that voted to strike is striking due to the special ed issues. We really do want what is best for our students and the ratio of sped teacher support per student is important to the success of our students.
- Melissa September 6, 2022 (3:46 pm)
  
  You are appreciated and supported, Sped Teacher. You are not being given the resources to do your job sanely or effectively. I hope that the district can see this.
ML /ELL Teacher in SPS September 7, 2022 (3:07 pm)

I am a ML (multilingual formerly called ELL teacher) for the past 10 years in an SPS school. I worked without prep period 20 times last year one guy 32 times in the chaos of having sometimes 12-14 adults out of the building. The environment was UNSAFE for students and staff. Four or five 5 quit. It was demoralizing, and frankly shitty teaching if you can’t have a basic break because no one wants to sub, subs don’t come to your building. SEA’s proposal –hire FULL TIME sub or two for certain buildings. SPS’s counterproposal —NOTHING, no change, just keep working in garbage conditions which are unsafe for the staff and children. That is one reason I am striking.I teach ML kids, we received 6 Newcomer students who I taught last year in addition to my other 60 . Great kids! And, newcomer students (NO or very little English) need MORE services. SEA proposal–allow us teachers some flexibility with staffing as SPS is now putting newcomers (used to be sent to Seattle World School. Flexibility = more staff if you have more newcomers. SPS proposal –LESS staffing! Refugee students who speak NO ENGLISH are very vulnerable to not good things. Less staff = less safety for them and more work for everyone in building. That is reason #2 I am striking. My building lost 15 staff, including 2 of the 3 admin. Good pay = staff retention = safe buildings = safe students = good working conditions. That is reason #3 I am striking.

makethecallplease September 6, 2022 (1:00 pm)

Has anyone seen an email from SPS or SEA notifying families when they will/won’t be notified? This feels like a “snow day situation” and I think they should say when the latest is that a robocall will be. Some parents have jobs that require them to provide more than same day notice.”Working through the night” sounds unnecessarily dramatic and impactful. This means families are on hold, and from my point of view it’s families that are lower income/have less options that are more impacted. So much for SPS and SEA caring about equity.This is all I see on the SPS website: If the first day of school is delayed, we will update families and staff as soon as possible.

Fully fund special education services September 6, 2022 (1:20 pm)

Reposting a comment from another community member in the last thread that most succinctly outlines the issue at hand. “Having read the district’s proposal, the unions concerns, and the Special Education Task Force’s original plan, it makes sense why this is a major hold up.The Task Force recommended a robust inclusion structure that will be built up over the next few school years. It includes specifics like guaranteed co-planning time (which is crucial for a co-teaching model) and a workload calculator that also includes ratio caps. Overall, it looks like a fairly solid plan and it makes sense that the team that created it had buy in from parents, teachers, and district staff originally.The problem with where bargaining is at is the district took these recommendations and used similar inclusion model language in their proposed contract but stripped out most of the language around the workload specifics that are necessary to make it work. Which would mean the goals would be the same but the district would not have the same accountability to support teacher workload. It is reasonable that the teachers would take issue with a change in service model that takes more resources to be implemented without those resources guaranteed in writing. Teaching is a service profession so teachers are well aware of the pressure placed on them to do more for the love of their students even when the resources and funding aren’t there. In a year where teacher burn out is so high nationwide, asking for even more without any guarantee of support is asking too much.The question we should be asking is why doesn’t the district want to include specifics that can be measured in their proposal so that they can be held accountable? If they intend to implement this plan with fidelity, they should be happy to commit to the metrics needed to make it work. By avoiding putting those specifics in writing in the enforceable contract, they’re avoiding accountability and that says a lot. Special education is an area the district has already been understaffing and dropping the ball on providing resources for year after year. It would be naive to just trust them to do the right thing for providing resources and manageable workloads without any specifics in place.Hoping they can come to a better agreement at the bargaining table and really hoping to avoid a strike, but I don’t blame teachers for speaking up for protecting their workload and district accountability. “

Fail on all counts September 6, 2022 (1:21 pm)

To hell with both SEA and SPS. They had all summer. Super lame to not figure this out BEFORE the start of school. You ALL get a FAIL for not completing your work on time. Curse you all.

Cough September 6, 2022 (1:41 pm)

@smoosh, how can you be wrong on so much of this? Support the teachers! Unions have done so much more good then bad, fellow blog readers dont buy what SPS is selling!

Smoosh September 6, 2022 (4:08 pm)

I am pro union. I have represented my unit in negotiations several times. I know the game. SEA is more like the police guild than a union. Solidarity is a two way street and SEA is selfish and entitled. Some readers drink the if it’s a union it must be good kool aid, others see how the principle of solidarity is being abused.I agree the special Ed protections should be stronger, but contract negotiations are all about a dollar amount. If the teachers believe the special Ed protections are so critical then agree to a smaller raise. SEA teachers are already quite well paid when compared to their peers and other service professionals like nurses and PTs. If this was about special Ed then they would agree to the 10.5% raise SPS is proposing, but they want to not allow the inclusive pathway if it means they get their 18%. decide for yourself if they deserve your support any more than the police guild does. Not all unions are created equal. They are bargaining with a democratically expected school board over our taxpayer dollars, not howard Shultz and Bezos.of course there should be money for teachers, fry cooks, nurses, and inclusion pathways and there isn’t because of rich bs. But let’s not hurt each other fighting over crumbs and claiming your enemy is each other,they are going to delay school to get their raise, if they cared about the students they would work and negotiate simultaneously like nurses. We provide for the greater good and get our pound of flesh without harming the community need. They should too otherwise they are just cops who can’t run a 10 minute mile.

Amy September 6, 2022 (3:29 pm)

I don’t usually comment on these things but people should do their homework before espousing their opinions publicly. I sure can’t imagine what rational person becomes a teacher for the money so the argument that the teachers only care about the money is ridiculous. That said, they do deserve a livable wage at minimum and a whole lot more than they get now. In this case though, my understanding is they are actually turning down monetary incentives because they are fighting for what is right for our kids and specifically kids with special education and/or multilingual needs. The number of kids with such needs is far higher than most people think/realize and meeting their needs appropriately helps all children.

Make call by 5pm please September 6, 2022 (3:54 pm)

Educators that care about special Ed kids know how important routine is for non- neurotypical kids. It would be a kindness and a support to not delay the strike call until after kids go to bed. Some kids are OK with random changes first thing in the morning before school. But please respect that some kids are much more ready for school if they can have a peaceful predictable routine, and know what they will be doing the next day. Going to bed uncertain about the next day only compounds the first day of school anxiety.

Wake up September 6, 2022 (4:26 pm)

Support teachers. We’re parents, we will remain responsible for our kids, and we will survive. But save the outrage for the politicians who think funding education isn’t a top priority, and then vote out every last one of them with vigor – like our children’s lives depend on it.

zark00 September 6, 2022 (4:45 pm)

SEA just threw 90% of Seattle students under the bus to cater to 10%. Where again are they all about ‘for the students’? Or is just some of the students they support? SPS has never cared about students, families, or schools, but SEA joining them in destroying education opportunities in Seattle is a new one.
- GHill September 6, 2022 (8:09 pm)
  
  I can understand how it might be difficult to see the value in appropriately resourcing special education services when you believe in a majority rule model as implied by the 90/10 comparison. As a parent of a disabled child in public school, my child is part of the community, not the “other” 10%. I would also urge you to consider how a majority rule framework harms education and our children. Each child approaches learning uniquely so providing support for all children to access public education is fundamental to a just society. The issue has been that education lacks an inclusive model and requires systemic changes, changes that have taken decades to implement. For years it has excluded, segregated, and in some cases abused disabled students. This is one step along the path toward a more equitable education model. Equity is important to make a note of here because I believe you are talking about equality which is very different. If we continue to work from that space, we will never achieve justice. I hope you will one day value my child as part of the community, deserving of the resources to access education alongside their peers. Thank you teachers for speaking up and out. Peace and love.
  - Overit September 7, 2022 (11:39 am)
    
    Nobody said other or excluded anyone. Putting words into other people’s mouths and then attacking them for “saying” that is a lame way to try to win a stupid internet debate. There is no such thing as a ‘majority rule framework’ – you can make stuff up all you want, doesn’t make it a thing. So this strike benefits my students because they get to enjoy a ‘just society’ – yeah I’d rather they actually get the education they deserve. If you really support a new inclusion model you should be supporting SPS in this strike. They’re the ones trying to revamp inclusion. SEA just wants ratios in writing, that’s it. I don’t think you understand what has happened to advanced learning opportunities in SPS. They don’t exist anymore, they’ve been completely dismantled (Spectrum and HCC) or reduced to nothing more that ‘you kid can learn alone because we don’t have the time or resources (Honors and AP). SEA has been very clear. This strike isn’t about pay, it’s not about resources for students, it’s about resources for one very specific subset of students. I’m glad you’re winning this one, it will hopefully improve things. I hope this won’t have detrimental impact on students not in that subset but if history is any indication it totally will. I realize that you are unable to accept that there are kids with needs that don’t fall into the same group as yours; I encourage you to think broader and understand that there are a lot of different kids in SPS, and just because a kid happens to not be SPED or ELL they still deserve an education that fits the way they learn too. It’s scorched earth though with people like you. Either people have to be 100% in board with your made up position on how inclusion and equity work, and agree that this somehow magically benefits everyone, or you just attack, insult, belittle, and condescend until you get your bandwagon riled up to beat us to a pulp with you.
- Get the Facts September 6, 2022 (11:21 pm)
  
  10% to the well off schools in west Seattle, and that’s a maybe. Seattle is very diverse. I live in Ranier Beach. Nearly 30 languages are spoken at my child’s school. There’s high needs special education students in nearly every class. This is Public school in Seattle- it covers the entire city. Not just one little area. 10%….. at least post facts if you want to use numbers. It is also about catering to ALL students, not 90%.
  - getreal September 7, 2022 (11:41 am)
    
    How does it cater to all students? 10% -13% – 16% – whatever, it doesn’t matter. This strike is about resources for a subset of students. That’s a fact. It will not benefit every student. Believing that is ridiculous if you have a kid in public school.

Josh September 6, 2022 (4:35 pm)

They just announced no school tomorrow. Good job teachers, you are really standing up for the kids.

Neighbor September 6, 2022 (4:38 pm)

Solidarity and support to the Seattle Education Association from your neighbor. Ignore the anti-union sentiments in these comments and know that there are WAY more people who support the teachers union than those who do not. The anti-union folks are just more vocal.

WSB September 6, 2022 (4:44 pm)

Since a few hours have passed, we’re covering the “no school tomorrow” announcement here:
https://westseattleblog.com/2022/09/no-school-wednesday-says-seattle-public-schools/

vee September 6, 2022 (5:11 pm)

both sides should be ashamed and share the blame.be adults and get this figured out before last minute. I feel for the students, the last 2 years have been a disisater, no wonder our students are falling behind, and those in private schools excell- This is a disaster!!!!!