SEATTLE — A decision on if teachers with Seattle Public schools will authorize a strike is expected by Tuesday, and families are anxious about what the outcome will be.
"Frustrated that it's come to this and I'm really angry about it and I hope that SPS takes the message and starts bargaining in good faith," said Olivia Chiong.
Chiong is one of the thousands of parents in the Seattle Public Schools district who are on edge this holiday weekend, as they wait to find out if the teachers will strike.
"We're all in support of our educators, we know they need to get the best agreement in place as possible. So, we're all for the strike if it's going to get them what they need to better serve our children," Chiong added.
Chiong is putting pen to paper with that statement, being one of dozens of parents and community members that signed an open letter sent to the district last week. The members are siding with the teachers, and holding the district responsible if school doesn't start on time.
"That is incredibly ugly, like you had time the whole summer to talk about this and to hash this out and you wait until the last week before school starts to be like oh if you don't agree to this we're just not, you know give you an agreement," said Chiong.
Chiong said she actually took this whole week off, in anticipation of a strike and said she's worried for families that don't have that luxury.
"It's a huge equity issue, for parents who can work from home, for parents who can afford a nanny, yeah that's not a big deal, but for parents who cannot it is a big deal and I think the district is not even thinking about that," said Chiong.
Meanwhile, the district said it's working on a plan to provide pick-up meals and is reaching out to community childcare providers to support families if school is delayed. Officials with the Seattle Education Association said bargaining was supposed to start Sunday at 1 p.m.
KING 5 has learned that meeting did happen and has reached out to the school district for comment, but has not heard back.
KING 5 was told the result of the teachers' vote on whether to strike should be revealed on Tuesday.