Marblehead students are headed back to school Wednesday morning for the first time since Nov. 8 after the teachers union and School Committee both ratified a new contract Tuesday night.
“In the spirit of the season, we are thankful to be returning to our students, and we are thankful for the incredible community support we witnessed for Marblehead educators and our public schools,” said Marblehead Education Association Co-president Jonathan Heller at a press conference outside the high school.
Heller continued, “We ratified a contract that begins to correct systematic problems that have been decades in the making. While we did not fully achieve every goal we were pursuing, we have made significant progress on the issues that matter most to our educators and our community: significant increases in pay for educators that bring us closer to regional standards, safety in our classrooms and progress toward modern parental leave.”
According to Heller, the contract includes a 10.5-16% wage increase for teachers over four years. Town Administrator Thatcher Kezer characterized it as a 10.5-18% increase. The pact also includes 15 days of paid parental leave (educators can also use banked sick days for a total of 12 weeks off) and the formation of a joint School Safety Committee with the school administration.
Asked what teachers will say to their students Wednesday morning, Heller replied, “We are going to welcome them back. I’m sure there will be hugs in there as well, and we just want to spend time with them. It’s an opportunity to reconnect with our students, spend time with them, do some team building with them again. I almost feel like it’s the first day of school again. As we go home tonight, it’ll be like the night before the first day…. Those jitters … and that excitement as well.”
Interim Superintendent John Robidoux, speaking at a School Committee press conference, said, “All the administrators have worked together to make sure they welcome the students back, that there’s a positive, safe environment, a soft start … especially for our most vulnerable students.”
According to the School Committee, the new contract raises the average salary of teachers to more than $100,000 and the top salary to $113,300 by the end of four years. Paraprofessionals, aides, lunch and bus monitors will receive a 48-69% increase, according to the committee.
“It was a win-win,” said School Committee Chair Jenn Schaeffner. “If you both walk away not too happy and not too sad, it was successful. It was unfortunate that it took this long and that it came to a strike.”
Kezer, who sat on the School Committee’s bargaining team, added, “The school union didn’t get everything they asked for in the dollars, but they got the best package that Marblehead has ever given to its unions.”
According to the committee, the contract will cost $6.4 million over four years. It will leave a $3.17 million shortfall in the school budget and require a Proposition 2 1/2 override that would add $334.60 to the average tax bill — or require layoffs.
Schaeffner addressed the override, which will likely come to voters at the May Town Meeting.
“A new chapter is opening,” Schaeffner said. “We are going to have some work to do in our community to fund this. The Proposition 2 1/2 override discussions will begin.”
Along with the contract, the two sides signed a return-to-work agreement. One provision reads, “The committee agrees not to commence or prosecute any suit, action or administrative proceeding against the MEA or the 18 members of its core bargaining team including its officers as a result of the work stoppage or other MEA collective actions.”
Fox explained that the School Committee agreed not to charge the union for expenses incurred during the strike, which she estimated to be about $20,000 a day.
“That’s police, that is the cost of producing meals for students as well, the employees who did show up to work because there were some, various elements like that. The court filing fees will be part of that — the court filing for the strike, but not the negotiating attorney fees.”
In exchange, the new contract will take effect Nov. 26 and not be retroactive to this summer, when the previous contract expired.
Fox gave a special shout-out to Marblehead High School teacher and coach Mike Giardi, who met with the School Committee bargaining team today to keep negotiations moving forward.
“While Mike Giardi didn’t grow up in Marblehead, he made himself an honorary Marbleheader today,” Fox said.
She added, “Every parent, every student owes him a debt of gratitude.”
Giardi, the assistant MHS football coach, will be on the sidelines with Coach Jim Rudloff at Fenway Wednesday night when the Magicians take on Swampscott in the Thanksgiving rivalry game.
