Aug 22, 2017 1 min read

NEW EAGLE – Teachers in Ringgold School District have voted overwhelmingly to approve a strike as stalled negotiations move before a fact-finder.

However, members of Ringgold Education Association are prevented from walking off the job while negotiations are before the independent fact-finder, whose recommendations will not be binding, Ringgold Superintendent Karen Polkabla said.

The nearly 200 teachers authorized a strike Monday, she said. The first day of classes in the district is Thursday.

The fact-finder was appointed by the state, and the district’s proposal was due to a negotiator at the end of September. Teachers have been working under a contract that expired June 30, and the terms of the latest proposals were being withheld.

REA President Maria Degnan could not be reached Tuesday for comment.

The last contract, a four-year pact, was approved in August 2014, following protracted negotiations. The teachers worked without a contract for a year and authorized a strike before reaching the agreement.