Nation IN BRIEF : WEST VIRGINIA : Striking Teachers Vow to Stay Out

The state Supreme Court upheld a lower court’s order that striking teachers in one county return to work, but it overrode another judge’s attempt to issue a statewide back-to-work order. The teachers’ union said the strike will continue. The walkout began March 7. Last Wednesday, about one-third of the state’s nearly 22,000 teachers showed up for work, but all schools were closed for two days of cooling off. The state attorney general’s office has declared the strike--the first by West Virginia teachers--illegal, and said teachers can be suspended, fired or charged with misdemeanors. The Legislature has approved a $27-million plan to improve teacher salaries.