MORGANTOWN – The Senate Education Committee approved a bill Tuesday to reaffirm that work stoppages and strikes by teachers and school staff are illegal, and outline some penalties for participating in stoppages.
SB 11 is a response to the teacher and staff walkouts of 2017 and 2018. The bill contains findings reiterating state code that says public employees may not participate in work stoppages or strikes.
County boards may not permit employees who participate to use accrued and equivalent instructional time to cancel days lost. Also, delivery of instruction through alternative methods do not apply and may not be used to cancel days lost.
The state Board of Education may not grant waivers to county boards for not meeting the 200-day minimum employment term or the 180-day instructional term if noncompliance results from a work stoppage or strike.
If an employee remains employed by a county board despite participating in an activity the state BOE determines to be grounds for termination, the county board must withhold that person’s pay for each day of participation.
When work stoppages or strikes close schools, the school may not hold extracurricular activities that day.
Sen. Mike Romano, D-Harrison, pointed out strikes and stoppages are already illegal. He said the real result of the bill is to usurp local control in the area of withholding pay.
“This is really taking away local control of the education systems from the counties and putting it into the hands of this ever-changing and often wavering body of political elected officials,” he said.
Committee chair Patricia Rucker, R-Jefferson, responded that the bill doesn’t require termination, just requires the county board to withhold pay if it chooses to keep the person employed.
Sen. Robert Plymale, D-Wayne, noted the choice to not hold extracurricular activities has always been a county-level decision. He said he doesn’t disagree with the practice but prefers it remain at the county level.
The bill passed in a divided voice vote. Romano and Sen. Bob Beach, D-Monongalia, asked that their nay votes be recorded in the meeting minutes.
The bill now goes to the full Senate.
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