A dozen municipal employees gathered outside Abbot Hall April 23, holding signs and calling for fair contracts just 11 days before Town Meeting and with no resolution in sight after nearly a year of contentious negotiations.
The protest preceded the Select Board meeting where Marblehead Municipal Employees Union President Terri Tauro addressed officials during public comment, reminding them of their legal obligations to municipal employees.
“Municipal union workers make up 80% of your workforce,” Tauro told the board. “We take care of your children and your seniors. We make sure you have clean water, clean streets and so much more. We will not be delayed, disrespected and ignored anymore.”
The standoff between town officials and the MMEU has intensified as negotiations drag on amid allegations of bad faith bargaining that have resulted in state labor complaints. The Massachusetts Department of Labor Relations has scheduled hearings for March 2026 after finding probable cause to support claims of surface bargaining and unreasonable delays.
Surface bargaining is a labor law term describing when a party appears to participate in negotiations but has no intention of reaching an agreement. According to the complaint, this includes tactics like making proposals with no real intent to find middle ground or deliberately stalling the negotiation process.
The union has filed a new complaint against the town with the Massachusetts Department of Labor Relations, alleging four unfair labor practices during contract talks. The complaint, filed April 22 and identified as DLR EFile No. 33544, claims the town unilaterally implemented a short-term disability insurance benefit without proper bargaining.
The filing also accuses the town of surface bargaining by proposing benefits it had already adopted and of improperly removing the finance benefit coordinator position from the bargaining unit despite union objections at a March 28 session. The fourth allegation states that the town’s April 11 “final offer” imposed an inappropriate deadline of April 18 for union ratification, which the complaint describes as “insistence to impasse on non-mandatory subjects of bargaining.”
Justin Boutwell, a highway department employee for over five years, joined fellow workers at Wednesday’s protest. He said employees simply want fair compensation and reasonable working conditions.
“We would like a fair cost of living increase,” Boutwell said. “We would like an increase to the on-call phone, because we’re required to be on call.”
Boutwell, who recently became a shop steward, expressed frustration about being required to remain on call during winter months and for any weather event deemed an emergency by town officials.
“We’re happy. We just want a fair contract,” he said. “The longer we go without a raise, the more expensive stuff gets, and the harder it is for us to live paycheck to paycheck”.
Union members expressed concern that Town Meeting is approaching on May 5 with no resolution in sight, potentially delaying cost-of-living increases for workers even longer.
All of this comes as the town remains in active collective bargaining negotiations with its two other key municipal unions: the police and fire.
The Marblehead Police Union (MASS C.O.P. Local 437) has been working without a contract since July 1, 2024. Negotiations with the town began in mid-2024, but no formal agreement has been announced. The Marblehead Firefighters Union (IAFF Local 2043) is in the final months of its current agreement, which is set to expire on June 30, 2025.
“We deserve ample time to bargain in good faith, to resolution without the threat of another year without a cost of living increase,” Tauro told the board.
While union representatives declined to discuss specific sticking points in ongoing negotiations, they confirmed that bargaining sessions continue, with the next one scheduled for Thursday.
Meanwhile, union officials have pointed to what they describe as contradictions in town spending priorities, noting that the town has created several new non-union positions with competitive salaries while continuing to resist wage increases for existing employees.
The Select Board did not directly respond to Tauro’s comments during Wednesday’s meeting, following typical procedure for items raised during public comment.
When contacted after the meeting, Town Administrator Thatcher Kezer has said the town remains committed to the negotiation process despite the ongoing labor disputes.
“We continue to engage in good faith bargaining with all three municipal unions and are working diligently toward resolutions that are fair to employees while remaining fiscally responsible to taxpayers,” Kezer said. “While we cannot comment on specific allegations in pending labor cases, we respect the process and our municipal workforce.”
