Seattle schools chief calls district broke as educators authorize strike over $100 million budget gap
Against the backdrop of falling enrollment and a widening budget shortfall, Seattle Public Schools is heading into a new school year carrying a reported deficit of around $100 million and a credible strike threat from its…
Key takeaways
- Seattle Public Schools faces a reported deficit of about $100 million heading into the new school year.
- Superintendent Ben Shuldiner said the district is "broke" and has offered a 9% pay increase over three years, stating it cannot go further.
- 91 percent of Seattle Education Association members voted to authorize a strike if no new contract is reached.
- The district serves roughly 5,000 fewer students than in 2019, narrowing its revenue base against fixed labor costs.
- The union's main sticking points are pay, special education supports, and educator workload.
Against the backdrop of falling enrollment and a widening budget shortfall, Seattle Public Schools is heading into a new school year carrying a reported deficit of around $100 million and a credible strike threat from its educators union. Superintendent Ben Shuldiner said at a Monday news conference that the district is "broke" and must be disciplined about how it spends money; 91 percent of Seattle Education Association members have voted to authorize a walkout if no new contract is secured.
Shuldiner's posture has been direct. In a Sunday letter addressed to the Seattle Education Association, he stated that the union "does not have to strike," that the current signed contract remains in force, and that retroactive pay would be available after a new agreement is reached provided the union does not walk out first. He put a 9% pay increase over three years on the table but made clear the district has no capacity to go further. "If we had the money, I would love to give it to everybody. But the problem is we don't," he said Monday.
The revenue base has narrowed
The approximately $100 million gap, as reported by KOMO News, is what remains after earlier cost-cutting efforts fell short. A school-closure and consolidation plan was abandoned following opposition from employees and the community. The district then pivoted to operational savings while pursuing additional funding from state lawmakers and local levy revenue.
Enrollment is a structural weight. Seattle Public Schools is serving roughly 5,000 fewer students now than in 2019, a contraction that narrows the revenue base against which the district's fixed labor costs sit. Shuldiner, appointed in November, said in February that stopping spending the district did not have was the first order of business.
The union's major sticking points, per KOMO News, are pay, special education supports, and workload pressure on educators. Nine in ten members backed the strike authorization, a posture the district's current offer has not shifted.
Jason Rantz, host of The Jason Rantz Show, told Fox News Digital that Shuldiner's public rebuttal was unusual in its specificity, citing the district's account that the union held a bargaining request for close to four months and submitted a two-word response to a proposed special education overhaul. Rantz also noted that teachers on the most common salary line earn $142,584 in total wages.
Source · 來源