The union representing teachers in the Murphysboro School District has voted to authorize a strike.
The Murphysboro Education Association says the vote comes after a lack of progress in negotiations with the Board of Education, including the last session on August 16th with a federal mediator.
Teachers say they've been working without a contract since the beginning of the school year. In a written release, MEA Vice President Melinda Pierson says teachers have taken multiple salary freezes over the last 10 years, so it's time for the district to make things right. Pierson says the union's math shows the district has the money to meet their requests for a fair contract without raising taxes.
MEA members will reach out to the public for support during the remainder of the negotiation process at Friday's Children's Pet and Hobby Parade, an Apple Festival tradition that the MEA has long sponsored.
The next negotiating session is scheduled for September 26th.
The earliest teachers would go on strike in Murphysboro would be October 1st.
