How Can We Resolve the Teacher Work Stoppage?

Every public school in West Virginia was closed Thursday and Friday as thousands of school employees flooded the state Capitol, asking for larger pay increases and a fix for the state employees health insurance system.

The Legislature has already passed a 2 percent pay raise for all state employees and promised to freeze insurance premiums for 17 months – but many teachers and school employees say it’s not enough.

On this week’s Front Porch podcast, we discuss how we can come to an agreement on this. And we debate how much a low-income state can and should pay teachers and school employees.

Welcome to “The Front Porch,” where we tackle the tough issues facing Appalachia the same way you talk with your friends on the porch.

Hosts include WVPB Executive Director and recovering reporter Scott Finn; economist Jessi Troyan of the free-market Cardinal Institute; and liberal columnist and avid goat herder Rick Wilson, who works for the American Friends Service Committee.

An edited version of “The Front Porch” airs Fridays at 4:50 p.m. on West Virginia Public Broadcasting’s radio network, and the full version is available at wvpublic.org and as a podcast as well.

Share your opinions with us about these issues, and let us know what you’d like us to discuss in the future. Send a tweet to @radiofinn or @wvpublicnews, or e-mail Scott at sfinn @ wvpublic.org

The Front Porch is underwritten by the Pulitzer Prize-winning Charleston Gazette-Mail. Find the latest news, traffic and weather on its CGM App. Download it in your app store, and check out its website: http://www.wvgazettemail.com/