Teachers Across US Protest for Better Benefits and Pay

Thousands of public school teachers across the country are skipping school Monday and holding rallies at their state capitols in an effort to pressure lawmakers.

The strike is shutting down entire districts in Arizona, Kentucky, and Oklahoma, where teachers are demanding better pay and benefits.

"Teachers now are stepping up and saying we're not going to take it anymore," Jennifer Walker, a Kentucky teacher, said. This is going to hurt our kids. This is going to hurt public education."

Nearly 30 districts in those states were forced to cancel classes Friday. 

"How are we going to recruit the best teachers out there if we're not going to treat our teachers fairly and treat them like the professionals that they are?" she added. 

Kentucky teachers plan to go to the state capitol in Frankfort in an effort to force Gov. Matt Bevin to veto a bill that changes their pension plan. 

The new plan could cut their benefits by limiting the number of sick days a teacher can put toward retirement. However, teachers say their biggest concern is to make sure public education is fully funded. 

"They need to understand we'll do whatever it takes to protect our children and our public education system," Walker said.

Meanwhile, teachers in Oklahoma are demanding more funding for education programs and better salaries. 

The protest comes after Gov. Mary Fallin signed legislation Thursday giving teachers an annual pay raises averaging $6,100, ABC News reports.  Although it is the largest wage increase in the state's history, teachers feel they have been shortchanged because only $50 million has been allotted to education programs and supplies. 

Alicia Priest, president of the Oklahoma Education Association, said the union has asked that the funding for education be raised by $200 million over the next three years. The union has also asked that teachers' pay be raised by $10,000 annually.

"It's not about teacher pay raises. It's not about being greedy and needing what I need. It's me seeing what my kids need and recognizing that I can only do so much in the classroom," David Walls, an Oklahoma teacher, told KOCO-TV.

This comes less than a month after teachers in West Virginia went on a nine-day strike. The governor ending up signing legislation that gives teachers a 5 percent pay raise. It is their first pay raise in four years. 

"What happened in West Virginia is inspiring for sure," a spokesperson for the Kentucky Education Association told ABC News.