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Parents, union leaders urge Evergreen to restart bargaining as classified staff prepare strike
Summary
Dozens of parents, teachers and union leaders at Wednesday's Evergreen Public Schools board meeting urged the district to resume contract talks with classified employees, citing staffing shortages, alleged bargaining bonuses paid to administrators and a four‑day strike that has delayed the start of school.
Dozens of parents, classified staff and union leaders told the Evergreen Public Schools Board of Directors on Wednesday that stalled contract talks with the district's classified employee bargaining unit have forced a four‑day strike and put students and staff at risk. Speakers urged the board to direct negotiators to return to the table and reach a settlement.
The comments came during the board's public‑comment period and focused on pay and working conditions for paraeducators, bus drivers, nurses and other classified staff. Melinda Troffer Cooper, PSC president, said the district's approach to negotiations has been abusive: "This is not bargaining. This is bullying." Amy Prentice, a parent and volunteer, said understaffing and underpaying paraeducators "puts the physical and mental safety of our employees and our students at risk every day."
Speakers described bargaining that they said began in March, accused the district of declining multiple meeting requests and said the…
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