Inside the Month-Long Portland Teachers'-Union Strike
National ReviewNov 27, 2023
The Facts
More than 40K Portland students Monday returned to classes after the end of the city’s first-ever teachers’ strike, which started Nov. 1.
Members of the Portland Association of Teachers on Sunday came to a tentative agreement with Portland Public Schools (PPS).
The Spin
Right narrative
It's about time the teachers dropped their untenable financial demands and did what's best for children, who still missed far too much school. The teachers' union victimized both children and their parents, who were having COVID shutdown stress disorders while the strikers were on the picket lines. It’s time to get back to work and do what's best for the kids.
Left narrative
The teachers' union did what was necessary to secure vital improvements and financial commitments for a better future for both teachers and students. This was a watershed moment for the teachers of Portland, but also another case of workers from varying sectors in the US getting fed up and using union action to force better working conditions.