The Latest: Oakland teachers to start strike Thursday
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The Latest on Oakland teachers strike (all times local):
4:30 p.m.
Teachers in Oakland, California, say they will start striking Thursday morning, after rejecting the district's latest offer to avoid a walkout.
Union President Keith Brown says the district on Wednesday proposed a raise of 7 percent over four years and a one-time bonus of 1.5 percent, up from its original offer of 5 percent over three years.
Brown says the latest offer fails to address the high cost of living that is driving teachers out of Oakland.
The union is demanding 12 percent over three years retroactive from 2017 to 2020. Teachers also want smaller class sizes, more counselors and full-time nurses.
The walkout will affect 36,000 students at 86 schools. The district says schools will remain open.
The Oakland walkout is the latest strike nationwide over classroom conditions and pay. Other recent strikes in Denver and West Virginia also have built on a wave of teacher activism that began last spring.
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This item has been corrected to show the latest offer from the school district includes a 7 percent raise over four years and a one-time 1.5 percent bonus, not an 8.5 percent raise over four years.
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1:05 p.m.
Teachers in Oakland, California, are getting ready to walk off the job Thursday in the latest strike nationwide over classroom conditions and pay.
The union representing 3,000 teachers said in a statement Wednesday that educators planned to say goodbye to students, "barring an unlikely change from the district."
The walkout would affect 36,000 students at 86 schools, which the district says will remain open with substitute teachers and non-union employees.
Teachers are seeking smaller class sizes, more counselors and full-time nurses, and a 12 percent raise retroactive from 2017 to 2020.
The district has offered a 5 percent raise, saying it's squeezed by rising costs and a budget crisis.
Other recent strikes in Denver and West Virginia also have built on a wave of teacher activism that began last spring.
