[su_youtube url=”https://youtu.be/TBPQDHdMa0w” height=”340″]

PRESTONSBURG, Ky. — Despite the rain and chilly weather, Friday, teachers from across the state stood in solidarity against Senate Bill 151.

Numerous school districts in Kentucky canceled classed after teachers and staff called in. Rallies and protests occurred in Frankfort and elsewhere.

Teachers and public employees from Floyd and surrounding counties met at the intersection of Route 114 and North Lake Drive in Prestonsburg to band together.

“We really shouldn’t have to rally,” said Greta Gilbert, a Kentucky teacher. “It’s sad that we do. But we’re here because we care about schools and students. We care about our retirees. My mother is a retired teacher. Both of my grandmothers are retired teachers. My daughter is eight and she wants to be a teacher.”

A controversial bill that supporters say would reduce more than 40-billion dollars in unfunded costs to the state’s pension systems received final passage yesterday. Opponents, however, say the bill breaks Kentucky’s pension promise to teachers.

Greta adds, “Yesterday, a very bad bill passed in the House and the Senate under the cover of darkness. It was done in an illegal way without actuarial analysis and without the senators and representatives having adequate time to review it.

“It was an amendment to a bill about sewer and wastewater-type issues and they changed that to be a bill about retirement.”

Senate Bill 151 was amended to add pension provisions that would place future teachers in a hybrid cash balance plan. It’s similar to the state’s retirement plan for state employees hired as of 2014.

Another section of the bill would prevent current teachers and workers from applying sick days toward retirement eligibility.

The bill now heads to the governor for approval.