EATONVILLE, Wash. — Teachers in the Eatonville School District plan to strike next week if they aren’t able to reach a contract agreement with the district.
Members of the Eatonville Education Association (EEA), the union that represents teachers, voted Tuesday to authorize a strike on Sept. 7, which is the first day of class.
“After spending years working in the hardest teaching environment any of us have ever experienced, we will not accept takeaways or a contract that doesn’t improve the needs of our students or our working conditions,” Michael Sniezak, EEA president, said in a statement.
EEA said it’s asking the district for smaller class sizes, better student mental health and behavior supports, reduced caseloads, supports for split classrooms and competitive compensation.
The union said it reached out to the district in the spring to set up bargaining sessions. The district made its initial proposal to the teachers in July, in which the union said educators’ proposals were “respectfully declined.”
EEA requested a mediator last month.
Talks continued over four bargaining dates in August and an additional session Thursday. A spokesperson for the union said one more bargaining date was set for Tuesday, but if there’s no movement made then, teachers will be on the picket line.
“Our ultimate goal is to get back to work and not strike, Sniezak said. “We are asking Superintendent Gary Neal to partner with us to settle this contract. He can make that happen.”
Eatonville is among several school districts in western Washington where teachers are either striking or poised to strike over pay increases, classroom sizes and workloads.
Teachers in Kent, which is the fourth largest school district in Washington state, have been on strike since Aug. 25, delaying the first week of school. Teachers in Seattle, which is the largest district in the state, authorized a strike vote and are expected to decide this weekend whether to strike next week. Port Angeles educators started the school year Thursday but said they would go on strike Tuesday if a contract isn’t agreed upon by then.