Protesters Rally Ahead Of SRC Meeting In Spring Garden

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – Philadelphia teachers voiced their frustrations and protested the cancellation of their contract Thursday afternoon.

Teachers, joined by parents and students, gathered outside Philadelphia school district headquarters in Spring Garden.

The Philadelphia School Reform Commission made the announcement last week that it was imposing new health care terms on the city's unionized public schoolteachers, effectively canceling its contract agreement with the teachers' union.

The school district says it will allow millions to go back into schools, but the teachers union calls it a pay cut.

"It's a shame that it's come to this. Nobody wants to be here. We want to be in the classrooms, we want to be with our students. But this is our livelihood and this is what we do. We have to be there for our kids and we have to be there for our own families too," a teacher said.

The rally was held ahead of tonight's SRC meeting, it's first since the contract was cancelled.

Teachers and parents called for the SRC to be disbanded during three hours of public comments.

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