Category Archives: Teacher Strikes

Issue Summary (Updated May 2012)
Teacher Strikes in Pennsylvania
The Issue:
 
Pennsylvania shares the undesirable dual distinction of being one of a small minority of states that permits teacher strikes and being the perennial leader in the number of teacher strikes nearly every year.   
 
What We Know:
 
In addition to being in that small handful of states, Pennsylvania has consistently been the leader in the number of strikes by school employees.  The state had more than in the neighboring states of Ohio and Illinois despite the fact that those states had more school districts than Pennsylvania, thus more opportunities for strikes.
 
In the 2010-11 school year the state had three strikes, all in Allegheny County.  Thus far in 2011-12 there has been one strike in the eastern Pennsylvania district of Neshaminy.  If there are no more it would be the lowest strike total in the state in recent history. 
 
Recommendations:
 
There have been proposals in the state legislature year after year to ban school strikes, yet they seem to go nowhere.  Until that changes Pennsylvania will be part of a small fraternity of states that allow for this disruptive practice.