June 20, 2018

So far in 2018, teachers in six states have staged walkouts or strikes to protest low pay and stagnation in spending on education. Marching teachers carried placards decrying substandard facilities, teacher shortages resulting in large class sizes, and waves of tax cuts that have reduced state revenues and cut education funding.

Teachers strike at the state capitol in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, on April 9, 2018. Teachers in Oklahoma and several other states went on strike this year to protest low wages, deep cuts to education funding, and other issues. Credit: © J Pat Carter, Getty Images

West Virginia’s teachers walked out on February 22, demanding higher pay, stability in insurance premiums, and higher standards for teacher certification. Nine days later, Governor Jim Justice yielded on some demands, pledging a 5 percent pay increase for all state employees. West Virginia, historically a proudly union state and the site of numerous strikes and violent clashes between coal miners and mine owners, has seen a steep drop-off in union participation since the mid-1900’s. Many of the state’s teachers cited striking miners as an inspiration.

In West Virginia and other states, cuts in state education funding have made districts increasingly reliant on local funding sources such as property and sales taxes. The budget cuts have created great disparities in teacher pay and student resources between wealthy suburban and poorer rural districts. West Virginians organized under the Twitter hashtag #RedForEd, and striking teachers wore red in solidarity as teacher walkouts spread to other states.

Kentucky’s teachers voted to strike on March 30, 2018, a day after state legislators inserted last-minute cuts to teacher pensions into a bill about unrelated sewer services. Kentucky teachers blasted the move and called for a rise in education funding. Teachers called in sick on April 2, forcing all districts to cancel classes while educators and their supporters marched on the state capitol in Frankfort. Governor Matt Bevin later vetoed a legislative compromise boosting some education funding, but teachers cheered on April 13 after both houses of Kentucky’s legislature voted to override Bevin’s veto.

Oklahoma teachers began a series of walkouts on April 2. A week earlier, the state’s legislature passed a bill that included long-awaited raises for teachers and support staff, but educators continued to call for increased funding for new textbooks and other essentials. The state’s largest teachers union called off the action on April 12 but vowed to keep up the pressure on state leaders.

On April 19, thousands of Arizona teachers voted to strike, leading to a walkout and a march to the state capitol in Phoenix on April 26. The teachers ended their walkouts on May 3, after Governor Doug Ducey promised a 20 percent pay increase by 2020 and additional funding for classrooms. State teachers groups said they would continue to fight for education during the 2018 elections. In Colorado, teachers in many districts staged several walkouts between April 26 and May 12, protesting low pay, insufficient school funding, and mismanagement of the teacher pension fund. The walkout ended after an agreement was reached on a modest pay raise. On May 16, 20,000 North Carolina teachers stage a one-day walkout, forcing districts to cancel classes for more than 1 million students.

The demonstrations were all the more notable because in five of the six states—Arizona, Kentucky, North Carolina, Oklahoma, and West Virginia (and in 30 other states as well)—teachers are legally forbidden from striking. State officials declined to penalize the striking educators, however, mindful of the popularity of the teachers’ cause and the seeming impossibility of firing and replacing hundreds of thousands of educators. The legislatures of all six affected states are under the control of Republicans, who for years have cut taxes on personal and corporate income, leading to drastic budget shortfalls and deep cuts in funding for education and other public services.