DENVER ? For 15 months, Denver educators have clearly expressed their vision for a fair, competitive and transparent salary schedule that prioritizes base salary over complicated, unreliable bonuses. Denver students deserve teachers and special service providers who stay in Denver for the entirety of their careers, and Denver educators deserve to afford to live in the communities they serve.
&nsbp;The district spent the last few weeks saying it heard what teachers were saying, yet when given the opportunity tonight to avert a strike with a transparent, competitive proposal, DPS made the situation worse and the strike inevitable.
“Teachers were stunned when DPS proposed hiking incentives instead of putting that new money into base pay where it could make the entire district more competitive. We are incredibly disappointed that on the last day of bargaining and less than two days before a strike, they doubled down on one-time incentives teachers do not want, and the data shows do not work to keep teachers in their schools,? said Henry Roman, teacher and president of the Denver Classroom Teachers Association. ?The bizarre proposal proves what we have said during this entire process, that DPS is not interested in listening to the concerns and needs of its teachers and special service providers. We will strike Monday for our students and for our profession, and perhaps then DPS will get the message and return to the bargaining table with a serious proposal aimed at solving the teacher turnover crisis in Denver.?
Faced with a smoke-and-mirrors proposal that continues to lack transparency and pushes for failed incentives for some over meaningful base salary for all, the DCTA strike will commence for the schools Denver students deserve.