{"id":21012,"date":"2018-03-11T00:26:35","date_gmt":"2018-03-11T08:26:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/?p=21012"},"modified":"2018-03-11T01:19:17","modified_gmt":"2018-03-11T09:19:17","slug":"rouge-forum-dispatch-your-wildcat-could-be-next-plan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.richgibson.com\/blog\/rouge-forum-dispatch-your-wildcat-could-be-next-plan\/","title":{"rendered":"Rouge Forum Dispatch: Your wildcat could be next! Plan!"},"content":{"rendered":"

We Say Fight Back!<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

www.facebook.com\/LateNightSeth\/videos\/1037728716377807\/<\/a><\/p>\n

Teachers\u2019 Strikes Spread to Other States?<\/span><\/h1>\n
Oklahoma and Kentucky may follow West Virginia as educators across the country take advantage of a strong economy to agitate for more pay.<\/div>\n
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The fury among low-paid teachers that triggered a wildcat teachers\u2019 strike\u00a0in West Virginia\u2014the longest<\/a> in its history\u2014may be spreading.<\/p>\n

Teachers across the country\u00a0may soon build on the state\u2019s example.\u00a0The Oklahoma teachers\u2019 union said it will shut down schools within months if its demands aren\u2019t met, and some teachers said\u00a0they may strike even if a deal is reached.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe end goal is funding for public education and our core services, and if it takes us closing down schools to do that, then we are prepared and willing to do so,\u201d said Alicia Priest, president of the Oklahoma Education Association. On Thursday,\u00a0the OEA will announce a timetable that could culminate in a school shutdown if lawmakers don\u2019t pass teacher raises,\u00a0something the legislature hasn\u2019t done in a decade. While some teachers may have been on the fence,\u00a0said Priest, the two-week West Virginia strike \u201chas given them an emboldened sense of purpose and a sense of power.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

That may not be enough for the rank and file. Some Oklahoma teachers are planning a wildcat strike of their own. Leaders from a dozen schools met last week to discuss such an unsanctioned walkout, and they plan to reconvene Wednesday to vote on a strike date. If the union\u2019s plans aren\u2019t to their liking, they may walk out, said Larry Cagle, who teaches advanced placement courses and is one of the organizers behind the independent effort. \u201cWe\u2019re going to force this on the union and on the superintendent,\u201d he said. \u201cTeachers are ready\u2014they are chomping at the bit.\u201d<\/p>\n