Penn Hills teachers have authorized a strike after more than a year of bargaining with the district.
The members of the Penn Hills Education Association made the decision after a vote on Thursday night.
“This is certainly not the point we wanted to come to,” said PHEA President Mark Wolfe. “There is only so much we can take and only so long that we can cross our fingers and wait for reasonable proposals from the district. Our members spoke very clearly tonight to give the authorization to our executive team to call for a strike if conditions at the table don’t improve.”
A recent sticking point is the district’s proposal for major changes to employee healthcare.
The union says its demands are within the financial ability of the district.
“To our teachers, this is a no-brainer. With the increasing demands on our workloads, our commitment has never wavered. We care about our students and this school district, and we know where the district is financially. We aren’t asking for anything outrageous, our asks are completely within the financial ability of the district,” Wolfe said. “At the same time, we can’t be walked all over or handed a proposal that’s going to hurt more people than it would help.”
The authorizations do not mean teachers are sticking immediately but that they could go on strike at any time.
The teachers have been without a contract with the district since January 2024.
PHEA and the district do not have another bargaining date confirmed at this time.
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