Arizona House Speaker J.D. Mesnard Disappointed Over Potential Teacher Strike

Published: Friday, April 20, 2018 - 8:48pm
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Arizona House Speaker J.D. Mesnard said on Friday he's disappointed that teachers in the state are poised to strike next Thursday as state lawmakers and Gov. Doug Ducey have been working to grant their request for a 20 percent pay raise.

“If at the end of the day this leads to massive walkouts," said Mesnard, "the kids are going to get hurt. That’s just really unfortunate. We’re approaching the end of the school year. You’ve got graduation on the line, again another example of how this will have a huge impact potentially to students.”

Teachers announced their intention to strike a week ahead of time to give schools time to prepare and state legislators a last chance to pass a budget that identifies a clear plan for raises for educators and support staff.

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