Florida judge tempers state mandate that all schools should reopen in-person class

FILE PHOTO: A general view of Charles Rushe Middle School, where teachers, whose unions are against their members returning to school, will hold a car parade protest in front of the Pasco County School district office in Land O' Lakes, in Pasco County, Florida, U.S., July 21, 2020. REUTERS/Octavio Jones

(Reuters) - A Florida judge struck down a state mandate Monday requiring "brick-and-mortar" schools to reopen amid the coronavirus pandemic, siding with a major Florida teachers union that wants local districts to decide.

The state's largest teacher's union, Florida Education Association (FEA), argued that the state's blanket mandate to reopen all schools was unsafe.