Teachers union leader insists schools will need more funding to reopen on time amid pandemic

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Teachers union president on push to reopen schools amid coronavirus pandemic: Remote learning hasn't worked

Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, joins Martha MacCallum with insight on 'The Story.'

American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten claimed on "The Story" Thursday that schools across the country will require additional funding in order to reopen their doors this fall as the coronavirus pandemic rages on.

"Seventy-five percent of active teachers are saying, 'If we can get the safety guidance done, we want to have kids in school,'" Weingarten told host Martha MacCallum.

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"One of the pieces [of] the safety guidance ... is to have a mask. Another piece is to do the physical distancing. But the other piece --  and this is where you may disagree," she told MacCallum, "is that this is going to cost 20 percent more for schools and not 20 percent less."

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Weingarten said she agreed it is important to allow children to be  physically present in classrooms starting in September, but claimed many school districts are "immobilized" due to budget cuts.

"Teachers all throughout America know it’s important to get our kids back to school, at least in the hybrid model, and my union is trying to do this every day," she insisted.

Last month, President Trump urged schools to reopen throughout the U.S., but many of the nation’s school districts have yet to announce solid plans for the upcoming school year.

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Nearly every state ordered or recommended that schools be closed for the rest of the 2019-2020 school year limit the spread of coronavirus and protect the health of students during the pandemic. However, Weingarten warned the continuation of online learning could have negative ramifications if children cannot return to school in the fall.

"We know kids have lost out by being home. We know remote learning hasn’t worked," said Weingarten, who encouraged viewers to reach out to their state representatives.

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"We need the money for PPE [personal protective equipment]," she said. "We need the money for extra teachers, we need the money for extra cleaning and extra buses.

"My members really want to be with their kids. They just want to be safe for both kids and for themselves."