June 18, 2025
Thom Carroll/For PhillyVoice
The Philadelphia Federation of Teachers voted to authorize a strike, giving the union the option to walk off the job if a new contract agreement isn't met by Aug. 31.
The Philadelphia Federation of Teachers voted to authorize a strike Tuesday night as the union continues to negotiate a new contract with the School District of Philadelphia.
The strike authorization gives the union the option to walk off the job if a new collective bargaining agreement isn't reached by Aug. 31, when the current deal expires. The union said 94% of its 14,000 members voted in favor of authorizing a strike.
The union is the largest in the district. It represents teachers, librarians, nurses and social workers, among other district employees.
Among their major asks, union members are requesting a higher top of the pay scale to attract talented teachers, smaller class sizes, additional pay for teachers managing oversized classes, pay increases for support staff, building upgrades including security systems and increased staffing.
They're also looking to end the current "3-5-7-9" sick day policy, which they say punishes teachers for using their sick days. Teachers are given 10 sick days per year, but under the policy, they must speak with a principal after taking their third sick day. Memos are placed in their permanent files after their fifth and seventh sick days, and after taking nine sick days, teachers face possible suspensions, among other consequences.
PFT President Arthur Steinberg said the union's bargaining team and the district have made progress since negotiations began, but the district is "slower to meet us halfway on key demands."
"Amid a district-wide staff shortage that left teachers, counselors, classroom assistants, and so many other education professionals juggling duties beyond their own job descriptions, the District must make changes that both slow attrition of burned-out employees and attracts teachers and specialists to Philadelphia public schools," Steinberg said in a press release.
The district said in a statement that it will continue negotiations with the union and anticipates an outcome before the fall.
"The current collective bargaining agreement expires on August 31, 2025 and we are optimistic that we will reach an agreement on a successor collective bargaining agreement," the statement said.
Tuesday's vote was the first time the union has authorized a strike since 2000. The School Reform Commission, created in December 2001 to place the district under state oversight, barred the union from striking. The SRC was dissolved in 2017 by former Mayor Jim Kenney.
For students, the upcoming school year begins Aug. 25. Staffers return from summer break Aug. 18.
