There is also a great deal of ambiguity concerning the negotiations between the teachers and the district. The teachers' union claims it is willing to compromise on key points in the dispute. The district denies that there has been any substantial effort from the teachers to compromise. Both sides in the strike say they're willing to continue negotiating, but no new talks have been scheduled. District officials claim the union rank and file has never had an opportunity to vote on the district's proposal of a 10 percent raise, retroactive to last July.
Striking teachers are skeptical of the district's offer.
That 10 percent would have worked in December. The exclusion of hundreds of teachers and parents from a regularly scheduled school board meeting Thursday night also served to further strain relations between the union and the district. Many were kept outside for hours. The teachers union contends the board violated the law in a misguided attempt to silence their concerns. District officials say the crowd exceeded the capacity of the board chambers, and keeping them out was simply a matter of safety.