Teachers strike causes classes to close Monday

PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- Roman Catholic high schools in the Philadelphia area will be closed Monday because teachers are on strike.
Negotiators for the Philadelphia Archdiocese and striking lay teachers met for a little over two hours Friday. After the meeting, diocese officials announced that classes will be canceled Monday for the district's 23,000 pupils and that extracurricular activities would be called off.
About 1,000 lay teachers at 22 high schools in Philadelphia and four suburban counties went on strike Tuesday after rejecting a proposed contract, saying that salary gains would have been erased by higher health-care costs.
Negotiators plan to meet again this weekend.
Pupils had been required to attend classes this week while their teachers picketed outside the high schools. Classes were staffed by administrators and nonunion employees, and schedules were abbreviated.