Teachers Arizona

More than 800 schoolteachers unhappy with a new contract staged a sickout, a day after their union and the Tucson school district reached a tentative agreement on a one-year pact with raises of about 10%. Schools used substitutes, combined classes and called in staff with teaching experience to help fill the void. School district officials had not decided whether to punish teachers who called in sick. Some teachers said they were upset because the agreement doesn't offer them enough money.

More than 800 schoolteachers unhappy with a new contract staged a sickout, a day after their union and the Tucson school district reached a tentative agreement on a one-year pact with raises of about 10%. Schools used substitutes, combined classes and called in staff with teaching experience to help fill the void. School district officials had not decided whether to punish teachers who called in sick. Some teachers said they were upset because the agreement doesn't offer them enough money.

About 700 teachers called in sick in the Phoenix suburb of Scottsdale to protest salary raises that don't match their expectations. Two weeks earlier, 580 teachers in Tucson staged a similar sickout. Last year, voters approved an initiative increasing the sales tax to 5.6% from 5% to raise a projected $450 million annually for education, including teacher pay raises. Some teachers and teachers unions protest the absence of a big boost to salaries that currently average $35,000 a year.

About 700 teachers called in sick in the Phoenix suburb of Scottsdale to protest salary raises that don't match their expectations. Two weeks earlier, 580 teachers in Tucson staged a similar sickout. Last year, voters approved an initiative increasing the sales tax to 5.6% from 5% to raise a projected $450 million annually for education, including teacher pay raises. Some teachers and teachers unions protest the absence of a big boost to salaries that currently average $35,000 a year.

Eight Democratic presidential contenders seeking support from the 1.9-million-member National Education Assn. agreed with the teachers group on most educational issues--ranging from increasing federal aid to schools to opposing tuition tax credits--in questionnaires released here Tuesday.