Denver strike ends; teachers to get big raises
Joe Amon
DENVER (AP) — Denver Public Schools and teachers have reached a deal to end their three day strike that includes raising pay by up to 11 percent, with built-in cost-of-living increases and more opportunities for future salary hikes.
They announced the deal Thursday morning after marathon negotiations and encouraged teachers to return to their classrooms.
The deal still must be ratified by the full union membership. More than half the district’s teachers went on strike Monday after negotiations over pay broke down.
A key sticking point was the teachers’ demand that the system rely less on bonuses for educators in high-poverty and high-priority schools. The union says that question will now be studied.
The district sees bonuses as key to boosting the academic performance of poor and minority students.
The strike was the latest action in a wave of teacher activism since last spring, when teachers walked off the job in West Virginia.
