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Children and families in the Northshore School District may soon be bracing for an illegal teachers strike. King 5 reports that teacher union executives in Northshore have scheduled a strike vote for August 31st, just days before schools are supposed to open. Union executives are also preparing for a strike vote in the Evergreen School District. Parents are allowed no say in these negotiations, even though officials are making decisions which directly affect the education of their children.
Washington state is plagued by teacher strikes, more than any other state in the country. Reports from the Bureau of Labor Statistics show that a child attending a school in Washington state is more likely to have his or her education disrupted by a teacher strike than a child in any other state. In 2015, three of the twelve largest strikes in the nation were strikes called by teachers unions in Washington state.
Here are the most recent teacher strikes:
- Fall 2015 – Union executives in Seattle call strike and close schools to 52,000 students
- Fall 2015 – Union executives in Pasco call strike and close schools to 17,000 students
- April and May 2015 – Union calls for rolling one-day strikes across the state, affecting 65 districts and closing schools to 573,005 students, 56% of Washington’s students.
- Fall 2013 – Union strike in Tacoma, closing schools to 30,000 students.
- Fall 2011 – Union strike in Bellingham, closing schools to 10,000 students.
- Fall 2009 – Union strike in Kent, closing schools to 26,000 students.
- Fall 2008 – Union strike in Bellevue, closing schools to 16,000 students.
As long as the WEA union is permitted such power over public education, Washington state will continue to be plagued by these illegal strikes. Charter schools insulate parents and children from teachers strikes. The more school choices, like charter schools, that policymakers offer parents for the education of their children, the less conflict there will be. Only then will teacher strikes stop hurting the education of children in Washington state.
