A week ahead of their potential walk out, Oklahoma teachers have taken to posting pay stubs on the internet to show what they believed to be egregious financial treatment on behalf of the state.
As KFOR reports, the average starting salary for a teacher in Oklahoma is just over $31,000 a year, one of the lowest rates in the nation.
As a result, many Oklahoma teachers have taken to leaving the state for greener pastures, such as neighboring Texas and Arkansas, which often pay $10,000 or even $20,000 more per year for the same work.
Oklahoma teachers are requesting a $10,000 per year raise, as well as a $5,000 raise for all support staff.
Oklahoma educators have not received a raise in over 10 years. Katherine Bishop, vice president of the Oklahoma Education Association, said it would take a $6,000 raise just to make up for the losses teachers have incurred over the last decade of legislative inaction.