Teachers strike in Portland Public Schools drags on in ‘no school November’

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Former Education Secretary Betsy DeVos discusses GOP candidates tackling teachers unions and parental rights.

Halfway through the month, it’s been a «no school November» for students in the Portland Public Schools system in Oregon as an ongoing strike by teachers has kept students out of classrooms while the two sides continue to negotiate a new labor agreement.

The Portland Association of Teachers (PAT) union began its strike on Nov. 1 after it failed to reach an agreement with the Portland Public Schools (PPS). Over 4,000 educators and teachers in the district are on strike – which is the first in the district’s history and has kept about 45,000 students in the district out of the classroom since it began.

Oregon’s Democratic Gov. Tina Kotek announced on Nov. 7 that she appointed a mediator to help broker a deal between the PAT union and PPS. Mediation is ongoing, and Portland Public Schools remained closed on Tuesday due to the strike. Kotek also directed state chief financial officer Kate Nass to work with the two sides on the financial side of talks to ensure they’re negotiating using the same set of numbers.

PARENTS, KIDS SIDELINED AS PORTLAND TEACHERS’ UNION, DISTRICT REMAIN GRIDLOCKED AMID STRIKE: ‘SETTING US BACK’

An ongoing strike by the Portland Association of Teachers has kept about 45,000 students out of classrooms since Nov. 1. ((Photo by Kerem Yucel/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images) / Getty Images)

The PAT union is pushing for pay raises as well as increased benefits and caps on class size along with other changes to teachers’ work schedules. PPS noted that a significant gap remains between the two sides as the cost of the union’s Nov. 12 proposal was estimated to cost about $358 million – about $100