Hundreds of North Thurston teachers picket at district headquarters Thursday morning
About 300 sign-waving North Thurston teachers, most of whom were dressed in red, picketed Thursday morning at district headquarters, wanting to call attention to their concerns about workloads and compensation.
The group gathered at North Thurston High School about 7:45 a.m., then marched to district headquarters on College Street. Before they embarked, North Thurston Education Association President Ray Nelson, a former middle school science teacher, addressed the crowd.
“We have to do this,” he said about Thursday’s gathering. “We have to inform our employer that we are serious and organized and that what we’re asking for is not outrageous, it is very, very reasonable. The hope is after we do a little informational picketing, they will come around a little more to our way.”
The district and union have been negotiating a new contract this summer. The current contract is set to expire Aug. 31. On that date, the union could approve a tentative contract or authorize a strike, union officials have said.
The first day of school is Sept. 7.
North Thurston Pubic Schools spokesman Aaron Wyatt said Wednesday that negotiations are ongoing.
“We anticipate starting school on time,” he said.
Teacher workloads were on the minds of many at Thursday’s rally.
Lydia Hawk Elementary teacher Maribel Vilchez said due to a teacher shortage, many existing teachers have had to fill in and help other teachers during their scheduled lesson-planning times.
“At the end of the day, we were exhausted,” she said. “We’re human beings and shaping human beings, so we have to be at our best.”
River Ridge High School teacher Jeff Berland said he gave up 37 planning periods last school year because of a lack of substitute teachers.
“Our bargaining team put forth some reasonable proposals in terms of workload or compensating us more appropriately for what we do,” he said.
Lunch times and planning periods also were taken away from teachers because of extra work, said Richelle Vining-Gonzalez, a counselor at Aspire Performing Arts Academy, a middle school in the district.
“What we experienced last year can’t happen again,” she said, adding that many things occurred outside their contracts.
Vining-Gonzalez and Timberline High School Teacher Alex McCarty also took issue with a report that recently appeared on The Olympian website about area teacher salaries, wanting to make clear that those numbers reflect total compensation, including benefits. They both scoffed at the notion of a teacher making more than $100,000 in base salary.
“I guarantee you they (teachers) make half of that,” Vining-Gonzalez said.
When asked by an Olympian reporter how much they made, all replied that it was a matter of public record.
Union officials said Wednesday they are looking for a modest increase in salaries in the next contract.
North Thurston Education Association President Nelson said he recently learned of a neighboring school district contract that will pay teachers 18 percent more over three years.
“I would like for us to stay ahead,” he said about North Thurston salaries.
This story was originally published August 25, 2022 at 10:29 AM.
