The Strongsville teachers strike is getting nasty. Picketing Ohio teachers entered their second week of classroom no-shows on Monday. Parents are concerned about the academic impact of the strike. Substitute teachers and school board members are concerned about their safety after a union memo reportedly encouraged striking teachers to share personal information about the individuals and their spouses.
Even though Strongsville teachers are on strike, students are still attending classes inside their respective school buildings. The district has reportedly been unable to garner enough substitutes to cover all the classes in the elementary, middle, and high school buildings. Concerned parents are worried about how much learning will be lost if the strike continues much longer.
When the two major teachers unions in the United States were asked about the educational impact picketing teachers have on students, they refused to comment. The National Education Association and the America Federation of Teachers are the two largest teachers union in America.
As previously reported by The Inquisitr, two Strongsville teachers were arrested for misdemeanors while reportedly attempting to block substitutes from entering school buildings. A bright pink letter was reportedly distributed to alert area residents if a “scab” lived in their neighborhood.
One Parma man who got a letter voiced concern over what the substitute teacher will go through because of the letter. The resident stated he did not know the man personally. But felt he was probably just a guy trying to find work. Representatives from the Strongsville teachers union claim they know nothing about the scab letters being handed out.
An information sharing project to detail personal information about school board members and their spouses is also allegedly occurring as the Strongsville strike continues. The striking teachers and the union have been accused of wanting the board members to feel the impact of the strike as much as the picketers themselves. Strongsville striking teacher and their union have supposedly been detailing the habits of the board members, such as when and where they visit health clubs, restaurants, and other common habits.
The striking teachers in Strongsville have also been keeping local police officers very busy on a daily basis. A police officer has been stationed outside of each school building on a daily basis. The local safety director also noted multiple complaints concerning verbal altercations between Strongsville striking teachers and parents trying to drop their children off for school.
Ohio is one of just eight states that permit teachers to go on strike without a penalty other than lost benefits and wages. A total of 27 states prohibit teachers strikes entirely. In 18 other states, teachers suffer various penalties for walking out on the students. The Strongsville teachers strike in the first such incident in the Buckeye State since 2008. The longest teachers strike during the past decade was in Pike County and lasted 106 days.
How do you feel about the Strongsville teachers strike and the educational impact on students?