CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Teachers yelled from the galleries of the state Senate Friday evening that they would be back at the capitol Monday to continue their call for better pay and benefits.
Capitol security checked more than 5,100 visitors through security Thursday and more than 4,000 on Friday. Organizers expect at least that many Monday.
Delegate Mike Caputo (D-Marion) said it’s important for the teachers and school service personnel to stay disciplined in order for their message to have the most impact.
“That’s what it’s going to take to win this fight,” Caputo said last week on MetroNews “Talkline.”
West Virginia Education Association President Dale Lee, WV-American Federation of Teachers President Christine Campbell and West Virginia School Service Personnel Association Executive Director Joe White appeared together in a late Friday afternoon news conference at the state capitol to announce the two-day work stoppage was going to continue for a third day.
Lee hoped superintendents in all 55 counties would close schools for another day Monday.
Caputo, a long member of the United Mine Workers Union who has stood on many picket lines, said it’s important for the teachers and service personnel to follow a plan being laid out by their particular organizations. He said they may urge them to go back to work later this week and then call for rolling walkouts.
“There’s got to be a strategy here and someone has got to take the lead,” Caputo said.