Will Tennessee become the next state to see a teacher strike?

With teachers going on strike or walking out in several states across the nation in recent days and weeks, what are the odds it can happen in Tennessee?

It's unlikely, but not out of the realm of possibility. That's because there are numerous issues at play that make a Tennessee teacher strike doubtful.

Gov. Bill Haslam has placed millions into teacher raises in this year's and previous budgets. The state has a healthy teacher retirement fund. And it's also illegal for teachers to strike.

Tennessee Education Association spokesman Jim Wrye said there also hasn't been the same talk about a strike in Tennessee as in other states.

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"While we believe the state, along with local governments, can do more to fund education and teacher pay, we are well ahead of the striking states in compensation," Wrye said.

Professional Educators of Tennessee CEO J.C. Bowman also said there is an opinion among Tennessee teachers that some progress has been made to increase salaries.

"I think to Haslam's credit, he has placed millions toward teacher salaries," Bowman said. "Maybe those dollars haven’t reached the classroom as much as we'd like ... but there is a perception there."

What’s happening in other states?

The teacher protests are part of a wave of dissatisfaction among teachers tied to school funding and wages.

In West Virginia, teachers went on strike last month due to low pay. Arizona teachers last week marched to the state's Capitol to rally against low pay and chronic underfunding of schools.

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In Oklahoma, teachers left their classrooms Monday to protest persistently low wages. Kentucky teachers, on the same day, left their classrooms to protest a proposal that would reform retirement pensions.

What about teacher pay in Tennessee?

Arizona, Kentucky, Oklahoma and Arizona rank near the bottom in teacher pay, according to a 2017 National Education Association ranking of teacher salaries.

Tennessee also lags behind most states. It ranks 39th.

But over the last several years, Haslam, a Republican, and lawmakers have placed more money into teacher pay.

Tennessee Department of Education Commissioner Candice McQueen said if the state's budget is approved this year, the state will have placed $1.5 billion into education funding, with $500 million in new money for teacher salaries in recent years.

"Since I became commissioner in 2015-16, we have made annual investments in teacher salaries that total more than $300 million — which would become more than $350 million with the additional funding proposed," McQueen said.

Is there a movement to walkout or strike in Tennessee?

Probably not, Bowman said.

Pay is important, but Tennessee teachers seem most concerned about working conditions, he said.

Union officials, however, aren't the definitive gauge on whether a strike or walkout could happen. Teachers organizing the strikes on social media channels in Kentucky and Oklahoma were responsible for the groundswell, separate from union leaders, according to The New York Times.

Wrye said Tennessee's teacher retirement fund is one of the healthiest in the country, but the issue of low pay still exists, especially in rural areas.

"We have seen record increases from the state on teacher compensation," Wrye said. "However, because of some decisions by state government, such as gutting the state minimum salary schedule a few years ago and not raising it the same percentage as the state budget increase, the impact of those increases were not as powerful as they should have been."

Can teachers strike in Tennessee?

Teacher strikes are illegal under Tennessee law and have been since 1978, Bowman said.

They also are illegal in West Virginia and Oklahoma. It's unclear in Tennessee law, though, whether a walkout is considered a teacher strike.

"The key in West Virginia is that all teachers walked off the job, and you can’t fire everybody," Wrye said. "We have been supportive of our fellow teachers in both those states, and with the unrest in Kentucky due to the changes in their retirement system done in such a backroom manner."

USA TODAY contributed to this story.

Reach Jason Gonzales at jagonzales@tennessean.com and on Twitter @ByJasonGonzales.