Teachers say they are rallying for better working conditions, higher pay, increased funding for public school classrooms, less emphasis on standardized testing and more respect.
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More than 49,000 members of the United Auto Workers walked off General Motors factory floors or set up picket lines early Monday as contract talks with the company deteriorated into a strike.
Read MoreWith General Motors and Ford out of the way, the United Auto Workers union wants a similar deal from Fiat Chrysler, which has a workforce of 8,156 in Indiana at four plants in Kokomo and one plant in Tipton.
Tuesday’s fast-growing rally is expected to cancel school for half of the state’s students while as many as 12,000 teachers descend on the Indiana Statehouse to make a list of demands.
The four-year agreement gives workers a mix of pay raises and lump-sum payments as well as a $9,000 ratification bonus.
Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb isn’t promising quick action in response to educators who want more teacher pay, but said he respects the decisions of school districts to call off classes for a Statehouse rally next week.
A 2018 voter-backed referendum funded the latest round of pay increases. Some teachers will see their salaries go up by as much as $9,400 this year, a significant increase designed to account for years of recession-era pay freezes.
So many teachers asked to take Nov. 19 off to rally at the Indiana Statehouse for higher pay that nearly 30 districts across the state have canceled school or scheduled e-learning days.
A retired vice president of the United Auto Workers union on Wednesday became the 13th person to be charged in a growing federal investigation of corruption at the union and auto companies.
A high-ranking United Auto Workers official is facing felony charges of embezzlement and fraud, and prosecutors say that several top union officials conspired to steal more than $1.5 million from the union. The Detroit News said one of the unnamed union leaders is union President Gary Jones.
The agreement likely will mirror the pact approved last week by General Motors workers after a 40-day strike.
The deal, which includes modest improvements in pay for new employees and promises that the company will bring full-time temporary workers on permanently, passed this week after being voted on by GM’s 47,000 workers.
Some production workers could return to work as early as Friday night or Saturday morning, ending a walkout that was big enough to help push down September U.S. durable goods orders by 1.1%, the largest drop in four months.
The police and fire departments at Indianapolis International Airport have been non-union since 2011, when the airport authority withdrew its recognition of employee unions.
Cars will soon start rolling off General Motors’ factory floors after a month-long shutdown, but the pain from millions of dollars in lost business will linger for some of the automaker’s key suppliers.
Some workers question why union leaders agreed to let General Motors close three factories, wondering if corruption inside the UAW influenced the decision to side with the company.
Details on the four-year pact were posted Thursday on the UAW website as factory level union officials met to decide if they’ll approve the deal. Workers went on strike Sept. 16, crippling the company’s U.S. production and costing it an estimated $2 billion.
The deal was hammered out after months of bargaining but won’t bring an immediate end to the strike by 49,000 hourly workers. They will likely stay on the picket lines for at least two more days as two union committees vote on the deal, after which the members will have to approve.
The newly released data, which comes from annual state-mandated disclosures, is the first indication of how members have responded to the Indianapolis Education Association’s tumultuous year.
The appearance of two key executives is a strong sign that bargainers are closing in on a contract agreement that would end the strike, which began on Sept. 16.
With the strike by factory workers against General Motors in its 29th day, there are signs that negotiators may be moving toward an agreement.
The strike has passed the point where GM can make up lost production, according to auto industry analysts.