41 Replies to "SEATTLE SCHOOL STRIKE: Second day of picketing ends, third planned; negotiations continue; no classes Friday"

• WS Teacher September 8, 2022 (4:58 pm)

  We want what is best for all of our students. That includes staffing SPED adequately. The strike is inconvenient for all teachers, parents, students, an community members involved. It hurts in the short run. However, public pressure and awareness should lead to better outcomes for all. #SEAStrong #AskanSPSeducator

  • Sarah Shapiro September 8, 2022 (10:14 pm)

    If the teachers say the strike is warranted, I support it. I hope for a swift resolution that meets the needs of the teachers and students. 

• SeattleParent September 8, 2022 (5:01 pm)

  You are not in a coal mine breathing toxic dust, you are stressed out in a classroom dealing with a district that is bloated and top heavy. Welcome to Seattle Public Schools and to the World. Get back to work and solve this like adults. We pay you to do a job, not to drag us into your inability to solve labor problems. I don’t expect everyone to agree with me on this – others hold strong opinions about supporting the union no matter what, and that is OK. When I am short on salt, I know I can come to the comments for my daily allowance. 

  • Shufflerunner September 8, 2022 (5:09 pm)

    Oh boy, looks like we’re starting out fresh.  

  • Wsmom September 8, 2022 (5:13 pm)

    Sounds like you rarely run out of salt.

  • ColumbiaChris September 8, 2022 (5:29 pm)

    Why is a top-heavy administration the fault of the teachers’ union?

  • Curtis September 8, 2022 (5:33 pm)

    Totally in agreement 100%!  This is third world level nonsense.  Teachers’ Union is out of control.  Our kids have a state constitutional right to education that is being infringed by this illegal strike.

  • Sigh September 8, 2022 (6:05 pm)

    Weird that you also pay district admin to do a job, but don’t seem too concerned about their inability to solve problems.  Why do you feel like it’s the teachers’ fault?  How does it benefit your child to be in a classroom with 30+ other students, some of whom are ELL or have IEPs and command more attention than their teacher has to give?  I’m sorry the district has convinced you that your child getting the least possible amount of attention is not only desirable, but that the teachers that are asking for more support are somehow the bad guys?

    • Jennifer September 8, 2022 (10:07 pm)

      Being in a classroom with 30 kids is better than being deprived of any education. 

  • Al King September 8, 2022 (6:34 pm)

    SeattleParent. I’ve decoded what you’re saying. Translation: Teachers, I’m paying you to babysit my kids. I want them out of my house and it’s your responsibility to handle them.

  • JJ September 8, 2022 (7:00 pm)

    Teacher here. “…[Y]ou are stressed out in a classroom dealing with a district that is bloated and top heavy.” This isn’t one of the stessors I experience on a daily basis. The stress I experience comes from having a class of 28 students, each with a unique set of needs. Teachers are on strike because district proposals will make our jobs even harder. Our district leadership needs to do better. We ARE solving this like adults, exercising our right to withhold our labor until our employer does better. This is what adults do.

    • junction neighbor September 9, 2022 (3:46 pm)

      nice response. my guess is that Seattle Parent thinks they know all that is involved in teaching too. no respect. sorry you and other teachers are subjected to that. 

  • Anne September 8, 2022 (8:35 pm)

    They are trying to solve it like adults.

  • WestSeattleBadTakes September 9, 2022 (7:23 am)

    Sounds like you’re into forced labor. Are you volunteering to round the teachers up and force them back to work?

• New to Public Schools September 8, 2022 (5:18 pm)

  Re-posting the comment I just posted on the old thread below and in response to SeattleParent above, this appears to be pretty much the only leverage teachers have to effectuate any change from a “bloated and top heavy” system that wants to pay lip service to ideals and not fund them.  What does “solving this like adults” mean to you in this scenario?  The level of education available to today’s kids will actually determine the quality of all of our future.

  This is our first year in Seattle Public Schools (transferred OUT of private – the grass is always greener!)  In any event, everything I have read so far aligns squarely with the teachers being in the right.  How can you expect teachers to implement the integration of special education students into general education classrooms with NO additional resources.  In what way does not every student suffer in that scenario.  I get that a strike is inconvenient but seriously, even for people that only care about their own kid and their own family’s needs, what the teachers are asking for will result in a better education for their kid.

  • Another WS mom September 8, 2022 (9:27 pm)

    I agree wholeheartedly with you. These teachers are using their last possible option to push for a bare minimum in classroom and educational quality. No private school parent would accept what the board has required here. I don’t understand why parents don’t support these teachers. Parents should join them. Caring about the quality of your child’s education is your responsibility as a parent and caring about the quality of childhood education is our collective responsibility as citizens of this democracy. I do understand why parents feel frustrated and screwed over but their anger is misdirected. Parents need to DEMAND these things of the school and this is the time to do that. As a taxpayer, I demand the district do better for these kids. 

• Buddy September 8, 2022 (5:40 pm)

  Teachers also pay monthly to be in a union and union dues are expensive and even substitute teachers pay union dues and so does everyone who works for a public school district are in a union if they choose to be and union dues are paid. Teachers are also tax payers and therefore they also contribute to paying themselves monthly. 

  • HL September 9, 2022 (1:23 pm)

    I’m all for people exercising their right to protest but do it in front of the school. Not on the corner of intersections. You all may not have to work but I do and the constant disruptions of honking horns and screaming is bs. Nothing like being in a meeting and have that blaring in the background. Save it for Saturday and Sunday.You’re not winning any support from me.

• Math Teacher September 8, 2022 (5:59 pm)

  Is that the mindset that you want teachers to instill in students?

• JPC September 8, 2022 (6:02 pm)

  Hi, any chance anyone has some insight regarding pre-K/K start? The SPS email today wasn’t very helpful. Sounds like they’re still planning for them to start on Monday (assuming they come to an agreement) but that could shift and youngest kids could start later than whenever the first day ends up being?

  • Another WS Teacher September 9, 2022 (6:20 pm)

    Not sure about pk, but Kinder will start 3 days after the other grades regardless of when that is. Those three days will be used for family connection conferences, which your kiddo’s teacher should reach out to schedule. 

• flimflam September 8, 2022 (6:24 pm)

  I mean if it’s come to this, there’s no way they’d go back on a Friday…

• Joyce September 8, 2022 (7:14 pm)

  Seems odd that they can announce a decision about Monday by 3pm tomorrow. I’d hope both sides are continuing to negotiate through the weekend, and 24/7 until an agreement is reached, so the kids can get in school! Does anyone know if that’s the case?? How could SPS know by Friday mid-afternoon if school needs to be canceled on Monday?

  • teacher September 8, 2022 (9:25 pm)

    The union’s plan is negotiate over the weekend. 

  • Seriouslythough September 8, 2022 (10:01 pm)

    It is my understanding that the union members will need time to review the agreement and vote on it. Bargaining will continue through the weekend (as long as both sides come to the table) and if an agreement is reached, the union could vote on it on Monday. The school district is trying to make the announcement by 3:00 so that families can prepare. This doesn’t mean that bargaining stops, but rather trying to respect that families need time to get their childcare set up. Also, the union has been working with community organizations to ensure there would be childcare options for families in the case of a strike. This is not to punish students or families, as some posters have claimed, but rather to fight for what students, teachers and school staff need to do their jobs well. All of our kids deserve schools that can meet their needs. 

  • Special Ed teacher here September 9, 2022 (6:13 am)

    Some families have to negotiate with employers about Monday which needs to be done today. Some families need to figure out child care. Some child cares are trying to find ways to stay open as many had staff that were going to part-time now that school was back in session. The school needs to know how to figure out breakfast and lunches for Monday. I’m sure there’s negotiations going on with the bus services that we have contracted.  So many many moving parts during a strike. So many entities affected. It makes total sense to call Friday 3:00 for Monday.

  • ColumbiaChris September 9, 2022 (9:54 am)

    The district refused to negotiate last weekend while the union apparently was ready and willing, so I suspect it’s the same story this weekend.

• JD September 8, 2022 (7:54 pm)

  SPS had turnover with their lead negotiator and put a former teacher/principal in to replace that individual. The MOU they wanted signed but SEA was that individuals doing. How about SPS put someone in who knows something about negotiating with a labor union and not an educator. Catastrophic negotiations on BOTH sides of the table!

  • wsres September 8, 2022 (9:29 pm)

    This shows poorly for the new superintendent. The negotiations really could have been completed before school started if SPS would have thought their special education proposal through. If you watch the video on the SPS bargaining webpage the only proposal was to “have inclusion” which most schools already do to the best of their ability with the amount of support staff they are given.

• 1994 September 8, 2022 (8:16 pm)

  After the last strike and resolution, has anyone assessed the outcomes, results. or did an analysis of how it benefitted the students? It was all about the students the last time.  But did the last strike benefit the students?

  • Yes! September 8, 2022 (8:44 pm)

    All k-5 students are guaranteed at least 30 minutes of recess a day. Before our last strike, some schools were getting far less recess than others. 

• Kyle September 8, 2022 (10:02 pm)

  https://twitter.com/MargueriteRoza/status/1567328359163789313?t=-folAtjDKDPrkqOaPZhJRQ&s=19

• TeacherMom September 8, 2022 (10:20 pm)

  I am an SPS teacher and SPS parent. My child is excited to start school  just like many of our kids and was disappointed to learn that it was delayed. BUT I have talked with my child about why this strike is necessary. At 7 years old, they are able to understand that we all need DIFFERENT things to be successful and that when we care for everyone, we all benefit. My child does not qualify for SPED or MLL, but I know that when their classmates’ needs are being met, it also helps my child. We are a community and ALL kids are OUR kids. I don’t want to be walking the picket line instead of teaching OUR children. I love my job and don’t mind the extra hours, but the constant putdowns and disrespect from the community get me down. I have multiple degrees and hundreds of credit hours of training to teach ALL OUR children to the best of my ability. I use my own money to  buy supplies, food, clothes and other needs to help OUR children be successful. Their comfort, smiles, thanks and success are what educators love. But our job is a special kind of STRESSFUL. Imagine planning 6-7 presentations per day for 30+ people each time. These presentations should be about 45 minutes, align to specific expectations, be interactive and engaging and have an assessment at the end. Then, to prepare the 6-7 presentations for the next day, we use the results from today’s assessment to tailor them to the specific needs of the 30+ people in each of the 6-7 groups. You have 45 minutes per day to prepare the 6-7 presentations for the next day. Now, imagine that these groups are kids! They are squirrelly, sensitive, goofy and not always focused… have you tried to get your child to clean their room? Do the dishes properly? All parents and caregivers KNOW that kids are a lot, so remember that educators work with 30+ at a time. This is a unique job and even with the raise we may get, cannot “adequately” compensate us for the amount of LOVE, PATIENCE, TIME and CARE we need to do it well. I have seen a lot of comments that teacher should expect we won’t be paid well, but that is not what is best for all OUR kids. OUR kids deserve educators who are not stressed about paying all their bills, finding a place to live and being able to have their child play a sport AND learn a musical instrument. These are things that we, as a community, can want for ALL OUR kids. 

  • New to Public Schools September 9, 2022 (8:16 am)

    Thank you very much for your work.

• N September 8, 2022 (10:21 pm)

  Haven’t heard any talk, except for the editorial in the times about the projected $100m shortfall in coming years and the lower enrollment yet higher staffing levels vs 2015.  Is the district actually able to fund more or are hands tied to some degree. I have no idea but these all seem like potential issues.  Why would class sizes be higher if staffing is larger and the student population has decreased.  Are these non classroom roles perhaps.

• Katrina Y September 9, 2022 (6:21 am)

  Support the Unions but the Teachers need to stop being selfish and holding families hostage with these last minute walk outs. You are NOT doing what is best for the Kids you claim to care about, just using them as props. I’m sure there are some teachers that do feel this is what’s best for the kids but your actions out a heavy burden on families. Negotiate AND work while doing so. SHAME! Having ben a teacher I know there are a lot historically that do not care for the kids they teach. All for supporting the ones that do and getting rid of the ones that do not.

• SeattleParent September 9, 2022 (7:29 am)

  The 2022-2023 School year is a project that ships in early September. It does so every year. Students and parents are the customers of this project. 

  If you have a suspicion your project date is slipping, you inform your customers early, and often. You offer an explanation of why the project slipped as well as the updated schedule. 

  We got none of that here, which just screams poor management. AND – if the district and teachers actually cared more about students than themselves, this would have been done. Instead, we get a note a few days before school starts that there is a strike.

  Judging by some of the responses to my original post, it seems like a lot of people would be benefit from some additional education on how to read. Classic WSB comments. “I don’t like what they said, so I am going to come up with a totally off the wall interpretation of what they said, then present it as tho it is true, and then pat myself on the back for owning them.”

  • New to Public Schools September 9, 2022 (5:36 pm)

    And . . . you blame the teachers for not informing their “customers” [an aside, who are the “customers” here since parents and students do not pay directly?  All Seattle taxpayers?  If so, I’ll bet the majority of Seattle taxpayers are in favor of better education and are less concerned than you about your immediate wants being met] .  Even though we are new to public schools, it’s pretty common societal knowledge that this a risk that is present every year if the parties do not reach agreement on issues for the new school year.

    P.S.  Your comment was pretty clear – you place the blame on the teachers for failing to accept unacceptable working and learning conditions and for using the sole tool they have to stand up for themselves and the quality of education for the students.    If that was not what you intended to say, perhaps you could benefit from some classes in effective writing. 

• Math Teacher September 9, 2022 (3:40 pm)

  @SeattleParent

  <<Get back to work and solve this like adults. We pay you to do a job, not to drag us into your inability to solve labor problems.>> 

  You expected positive responses? How frustrating that must be for you. 

  <<if …teachers actually cared more about students than themselves>>

  I care about my students and colleagues, AND I care about having work conditions that allow us to effectively and sustainably teach and support the students. Nothing about my job description requires me to care “more” about students than myself.  That sounds like an unsustainable project management model.

• WSB September 9, 2022 (4:45 pm)

  Families and staff should have already received this from the district but if not, SPS changed their mind and now says they’ll decide on Monday at some point this weekend, and that talks are expected to continue into the weekend.

• EJ September 10, 2022 (7:10 am)

  FDR was right- public sector unions should be banned. They hold the taxpayers they’re supposed to serve hostage.We’re coming off years of damage to children through strict COVID policies, which the unions supported. And to all the progressives, online schooling and other policies hurt black children the most and wealthy white children the least. If unequal outcomes=racism, the teachers unions that pushed for strict policies are racist.Now the unions want more money and smaller classes in a labor market where it’s next to impossible to find enough staffing. This is selfish.Fire them all and give the $30K/ student the district spends to parents to find a better school for their kids.

Sorry, comment time is over.