The Select Board approved contracts with all three municipal unions Monday morning, ending more than a year of contentious negotiations and just hours before Town Meeting began.
Town Administrator Thatcher Kezer, far right, reviews final details with the Marblehead Select Board during a special meeting Monday morning, May 5, where the board unanimously approved contracts with all three municipal unions ahead of Town Meeting. CURRENT PHOTO / WILL DOWD
After a two-hour executive session, the board voted to approve a three-year contract with the Marblehead Municipal Employees Union and endorsed contracts with the town’s police and fire unions during a special meeting held at 8 a.m.
“Thrilled, I’m happy we were able to get all three contracts settled before Town Meeting,” Town Administrator Thatcher Kezer said following the votes.
The agreement with the municipal employees union, which represents about 80% of the town’s non-school workforce, includes cost-of-living adjustments of 2% effective July 1, 2024, followed by 3% increases in both 2025 and 2026. The contract runs through June 30, 2027.
Firefighters received a one-year “bridge” contract running from July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2026, with a 3% cost-of-living adjustment.
The police union contract, spanning July 1, 2025, to June 30, 2028, includes an accepted salary schedule, though specific annual percentage increases weren’t disclosed during open session. Select Board member Bret Murray recused himself from votes on the police and fire contracts.
All three agreements are contingent on funding approval at Town Meeting. (Visit MarbleheadCurrent.org for the latest on Town Meeting votes.)
The last-minute agreement represents a significant shift from the acrimonious labor relations that have dominated town politics in recent months. The Massachusetts Department of Labor Relations had scheduled hearings for March 2026 after finding probable cause to support claims of surface bargaining and unreasonable delays filed by the municipal employees union.
Former union president Terri Tauro had filed a new complaint on April 22, alleging four unfair labor practices during contract talks, including claims that the town unilaterally implemented a short-term disability insurance benefit without proper bargaining and improperly removed the finance benefit coordinator position from the bargaining unit.
Just two weeks ago, on April 23, about a dozen municipal employees demonstrated outside Abbot Hall with signs demanding fair contracts. During that protest, Tauro addressed the board during public comment, reminding officials of their legal obligations to municipal employees.
“Municipal union workers make up 80% of your workforce,” Tauro told the board at that time. “We take care of your children and your seniors. We make sure you have clean water, clean streets and so much more.”
After the contracts were signed, Tauro added, “I stepped down to focus on my campaign and family but the MMEU gave it their all for over a year. Although we did not have enough time, or cooperation, that we needed for our members, we did make progress at the very end.”
The Marblehead Police Union (MASS C.O.P. Local 437) had been working without a contract since July 1, 2024, while the Marblehead Firefighters Union (IAFF Local 2043) was in the final months of its current agreement set to expire on June 30, 2025.
The contracts affect more than 300 non-school municipal workers across departments ranging from public works to schools, libraries to public safety.
