Teachers in Beverly and Gloucester have both overwhelmingly voted to go on strike, unions in both districts announced on Thursday.
At a press conference Thursday night, Beverly Teachers Association Co-President Julia Brotherton said nearly all of its members approved the strike “effectively immediately.” The Union of Gloucester Educators, which represents teachers and paraprofessionals, said more than 98% of educators there voted in favor of the strike.
Union of Gloucester Educators Vice President Matthew Lewis said they have been at the negotiating table with the district since March 2023.
“The paraprofessional contract has been expired for 496 days, and instead of doing any work to try and resolve the crisis, our school committee has decided to stall, stall and stall some more,” Lewis told GBH News. “The teachers have been without a contract since the start of this school year.”
Gloucester union members have been asking their school district for 10.5 weeks of paid parental leave, ten more minutes of preparation time and what they consider a 'living wage’ for paraprofessionals.
“My wife and I are expecting our first [child] in January,” Lewis said. “Paid parental leave would offer me the peace of mind to know that I can stay with my newborn during those critical early days, weeks and months of their birth.”
Beverly union members are also asking for higher starting salaries for paraprofessionals.
“Teachers and [paraprofessionals] are leaving Beverly for higher-paying jobs in neighboring communities like Danvers, Hamilton and Manchester,” Brotherton said, as first reported by NBC 10. “Inadequate parental leave policies force new parents to return to work before they’re ready to devote themselves to teaching.”
Beverly Public Schools paraprofessionals currently start at $20,000 per year and the union is seeking to increase that to $41,217 a year.
The Beverly Teachers Association is also asking for 12 weeks of paid parental leave, limits on high school class sizes and longer lunch and recess time for students in kindergarten to fifth grade.
On Friday, yard signs all over Beverly showed support for the local teachers on strike. Cars and even a firetruck blasted their horns as they drove past the middle school, where more than 120 teachers and parents waved picket signs and rung bells.
Casey Fiore, a civics teacher and a leader in the Beverly Teachers Association, said teachers are backing up their paraprofessional staff.
“The teachers would be willing to make this so much quicker if it wasn’t for how badly our paraprofessionals are being forgotten about,” he said. “For so many teachers to come out here and be like, ‘No, I’m sticking up for my coworkers, the people who make this building work,’ it’s so great to see the solidarity.”
Chris Melanson, a sixth grade teacher at Beverly Middle School, said the pay for paraprofessionals is inexcusable.
“They’re paid absolute poverty wages here in Beverly ... where property values have skyrocketed,” he said. “That’s just not OK.”
Melanson said union members are also calling for better funded special education and parental leave policies more in line with other public schools in the state.
“My wife is 35 weeks pregnant,” he said. “Under the current contract, I would get three weeks leave not paid. I’d have to use my own sick time. We know that other districts have really moved a long way.”
Schools in Beverly will be closed through the duration of the strike.
“We will work with state officials to minimize the disruption to our students’ education and we urge all teachers and staff to return to school,” Beverly School Committee Chair Rachael Abell said in a statement. “We call on the BTA to end their illegal strike and join us in working with the mediator to negotiate in good faith.”
Lewis said that roughly 90% of Gloucester High School students walked out of class on Thursday to rally in support of educators. Schools in Gloucester will be closed on Friday. Gloucester Public Schools did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Boston Teachers Union issued a statement of support on Friday, saying the fight in Beverly and Gloucester is also their own: “a fight for fair conditions, proper funding, and the dignity our students and educators deserve.”
Salem school leaders recently negotiated six weeks paid parental leave for their teachers. The union has also expressed their support for teachers in Beverly and Gloucester.
