Minneapolis teachers strike after failing to reach contract
Source: AP
By STEVE KARNOWSKI
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Teachers in the Minneapolis School District walked off the job on Tuesday in a dispute over wages, class sizes and mental health support for students coping with two years of the coronavirus pandemic, at least temporarily pausing classes for about 29,000 students in one of Minnesota’s largest school districts.
Union members said they could not reach agreement on wages, especially a “living wage” for education support professionals, as well as caps on class sizes and more mental health services for students.
“We are on strike for safe and stable schools, we’re on strike for systemic change, we’re on strike for our students, the future of our city and the future of Minneapolis public schools,” Greta Cunningham, president of the teachers’ chapter of the Minneapolis Federation of Teachers, said Tuesday outside a south Minneapolis elementary school where more than 100 union members and supporters launched a morning picket line in freezing weather.
The school district called the news disappointing but pledged to keep negotiating. Callahan said the union was also willing to resume bargaining, but no talks were scheduled.
Twin Cities teachers and their supporters brave sub-zero temperatures Saturday, Feb. 12, 2022, to march in Minneapolis. Teachers in Minneapolis and St. Paul public schools could go on strike as early as Tuesday, March 8, 2022, over demands for higher wages, smaller class sizes and more mental health services. (Hannah Hobus/Pioneer Press via AP)
Read more: https://apnews.com/article/covid-health-business-minneapolis-mental-health-c4e1c35fc92188e3f849eb5847d68d3b
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