Thousands of West Virginia teachers and school service personnel have flooded the state capitol every day since February 22, demanding higher pay and more funding for the state’s struggling public employee health care system.

This is West Virginia’s first-ever statewide teacher and school service personnel strike and the only one since 1990. In less than two months, the movement has grown from a couple hundred angry teachers and school service personnel demonstrating at the capitol to a full-blown strike. It has seemingly caught everyone — from union leaders to state legislators to the rest of the country — by surprise.

Things seemed ordinary enough a few months ago. Last November and December, the Public Employee Insurance Agency (PEIA) Board held hearings, as it does annually, on its proposed changes for the upcoming fiscal year. PEIA’s health insurance plans cover one in seven West Virginians, including teachers. Given insufficient funding to keep pace with rising health care costs, the board proposed more cuts.