PHOENIX - Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction Diane Douglas said a teacher strike, or as some are calling it, a walkout, is the wrong approach.
"I think walking out on a strike is premature," Douglas said during a State Board of Education meeting Monday. "I think it breaks a trust between our students, our families that they serve."
Douglas said public service workers or employees, in her opinion "should not strike."
Douglas' comments come as the #RedForEd movement faces what could prove to be a pivotal week in the fight for better pay for Arizona teacher. Teachers are prepared to walk out of school Thursday unless their demands are met.
Arizona's largest teacher membership group voted last week for a statewide walkout by public school employees.
Several school districts have already announced plans and closures for the imminent walkout.
Teachers say the proposed 20 percent pay increase for educators over several years by Gov. Doug Ducey is not enough. They also want wage increases for support staff as well as education funding to be restored to the level it was in 2008. Teachers are also asking that no new tax cuts be implemented until the per-pupil spending reaches the national average.
Douglas said a teacher strike in Arizona is unlawful, citing an Arizona attorney general opinion from 1971.
"I think possibly there could be actions filed against their certification and then it will be up to this board to determine what direction they take," she said.