BELLEVUE - Progress is slow in resolving a teachers' strike in Bellevue that has already wiped out the first week of school there.

The teachers' union announced Saturday afternoon it has slashed its demands, but there's still no deal. The main sticking point is teachers' pay.

Meanwhile, classes remain cancelled for Monday, and there is no indication when they will resume for the district's 16,000 students.

Officials said the two sides have made some headway on one teacher demand - that they be given more leeway to individually tailor their lesson plans.

The school district also has agreed to give teachers more flexibility in their health care coverage.

But the two sides remain stuck on the pay issue.

Teachers say they dropped their salary hike request from 11 percent down to 5 percent, and they need the district to meet them halfway.

"Today we want to let the community know the Bellevue School District has the power to resolve this strike quickly, but the next move is in the district's hands," says Michele Miller, the teachers' union president.

But the district says it's already slashed $5 million from the budget, and the best pay raise it can offer is 2 1/2 percent.

Meanwhile, the Bellevue School District's 1,200 teachers are on strike until their demands are met.