A rally by teachers outside the State Capitol late Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2019, in Denver.
(Image credit: David Zalubowski/The Associated Press)

After negotiations between Denver Public Schools and the local teachers' union, the Denver Classroom Teachers Association (DCTA), failed to reach a new salary agreement Saturday, the union announced plans for a strike beginning Monday.

At issue is the school district's method of awarding bonuses as performance incentives; the union is pushing for lower bonuses and higher, more consistent base pay. "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," the union said.

"We're disappointed that the DCTA walked away from the table," Denver Public Schools tweeted late Saturday. "We presented an updated proposal that responds to what we have heard from teachers, aligns to our values of equity and retention, honors the ProComp ballot language, and significantly increases the base pay for teachers."

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While Monday classes have been canceled for many preschoolers in the district, most Denver schools will remain open Monday, operated by administrators and substitute teachers.

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Bonnie Kristian

Bonnie Kristian was a deputy editor and acting editor-in-chief of TheWeek.com. She is a columnist at Christianity Today and author of Untrustworthy: The Knowledge Crisis Breaking Our Brains, Polluting Our Politics, and Corrupting Christian Community (forthcoming 2022) and A Flexible Faith: Rethinking What It Means to Follow Jesus Today (2018). Her writing has also appeared at Time Magazine, CNN, USA Today, Newsweek, the Los Angeles Times, and The American Conservative, among other outlets.