Advertiser Staff
As tension mounts, Hawai‘i’s 13,000 public school teachers vote tonight on whether to authorize a strike on April 5.
A teacher walkout would be the first strike since a 19-day walkout in April 1973. Four years ago teachers were within hours of striking when a deal was reached that gave them a 17 percent wage increase and added seven days to the school calendar.
The O‘ahu vote begins at 6:30 p.m. at the Neal Blaisdell Center. Neighbor Island teachers will vote on their islands. Results will be announced after the voting ends around 8 p.m.
“The teachers are angry and they’re ready and willing to walk, to do whatever it takes to settle the contract,” Danielle Lum, Hawaii State Teachers Association spokeswoman, said this week.
The state ran a full-page ad in The Advertiser today summarizing negotiations with four public worker unions, including teachers.
Gov. Ben Cayetano argues that the state’s offer would make Hawai‘i’s teachers the 11th-highest-paid in the nation. “But the Hawaii State teachers Association is demanding more than double what the state can afford,” Cayetano said.
Teachers now earn $29,000 to $58,000 annually.
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