In an Aug. 3 interview with CBSN’s Tanya Rivero, AFT President Randi Weingarten addressed the union’s main criteria in order for U.S. schools to reopen — and some of those necessary steps require funds not readily available.
“State and local government budgets have gone down 20 percent, so if we don’t get this money from the federal government — which the House of Representatives passed in May — there’s no way to actually pay for the kind of masks and other things that you need,” Weingarten said.
As for the possibility of safety strikes by AFT members, Weingarten said, “No one wants to strike.”
She added, “If governors like Ron DeSantis keep on refusing to believe that COVID is a problem in Florida … even though strikes are prohibited in Florida, our members may take that last resort to ensure their moral responsibility of keeping themselves and others safe. That’s the front lines that teachers have right now.”
Watch the full interview here.