Kennewick Educator Strike Averted, Ratification Vote Thursday
Assuming the some 600 members approve the tentative agreement with District in a vote Thursday, they will stay on job.
After months of negotiating some 600 para-educators, cashiers and school nurses in the Kennewick School District were prepared to take a strike vote Tuesday night, but an agreement appears to have headed that off.
The District and support staff came arrived at a contract, now it gets voted on Thursday night. The para-educators, cashiers and Licensed Practical Nurses (LPN's) who are school nurses are not part of the WEA (teachers union) but are under the umbrella of SEIU, Service Employees International Union.
Workers had been hoping to boost pay across the board, as part of the multi-billion dollar plan set aside by the legislature last year. Entry level para-educators must possess at least an AA degree or pass an equivalency test, and start at just under $14 an hour.