Yelm schools to open one day late as teachers and school district ratify new contract

YELM, Washington — Students and teachers in Yelm will begin the new school year on Wednesday, a day later than planned.

The teachers union approved a new contract with the district. Classes were suspended Tuesday because no agreement had been reached and the union authorized a strike.

“We feel good about what we were able to negotiate, to come to agreements,” said Tasha Johnson, a teacher at Yelm High School and co-president of the union.

SEE ALSO: Yelm teachers reach provisional agreement and strike is avoided as classes prepare to start

The Yelm Education Association told KOMO News that the collective bargaining agreement includes:

• Reducing staff workload
• Transfer of state-funded salary increases and cost-of-living adjustments to help attract and retain enough educators
• Reducing the workload for counselors
• Protected daily planning time and more time for primary school

“I think they reached a good agreement, but there are still some issues on the table that they will probably have to resolve later. Especially class sizes,” said teacher Arla Dahlberg.

The teachers’ union had previously voted in favour of the strike and had prepared for it in what would have been the first teachers’ picket in Yelm in decades. But the signing of a new contract means the signs will be put into storage.

“The community support has been tremendous because it has strengthened our membership, which tells them that Yelm cares about its teachers,” said union co-president Kathryn Cullum.

In an emailed statement to KOMO News, a Yelm School District spokeswoman explained that the district “had to make staffing changes and reduce spending” due to a tax loss earlier this year. She added that the district will continue to monitor “the budget shortfall and reflect on how decisions impact students and staff.”

ALSO SEE: Mount Vernon paraeducators vote in favor of new contract; classes begin Tuesday

It’s a time of great distress for employees in several school districts. In Mount Vernon, a strike by paraeducators through an independent union to demand better pay and more resources delayed their first day of school.

So why is this happening now?

The Washington Education Association says districts face budget shortfalls due to insufficient state funding, making it difficult to “ensure adequate staffing and provide salaries that recruit and retain educators.”

The WEA confirms that no other local unions are planning strikes anywhere else in the state, although some unions are still negotiating with their school districts.