On January 22, at the end of the fourth consecutive day of negotiations, the Newton Teachers Association (NTA) and the School Committee again held separate press conferences. The Teachers Strike remains in effect, and schools will remain closed for a third day, on Tuesday, January 23.
The NTA presented a Memorandum of Understanding to the School Committee containing a compilation of its updated proposals, and the School Committee intends to present a response by noon on January 23. Each side noted that some progress had been made, but not enough.
NTA Press Conference
NTA spokesperson and Newton South HS teacher Ryan Normandin provided a statement and answered questions. He said:
- “We knew these fines were coming we are prepared for these fines. …We feel strongly that we are not going to return to the classroom until we get a deal that is good for our students that is good for all of us, is going to make sure our students are safe and have the supports they need.”
- “We believe that new parents should have 60 days to spend with new members of their family, but the School Committee has refused even to remove the language from their proposal that only gives parental leave to ‘primary parents.’ Not only is this language out of the Dark Ages, it’s illegal in Massachusetts.”
- “For 16 months we’ve asked the committee to adequately staff our schools, our classrooms. …We have students who are on IEPs for whom we are not providing legally obligating services which means the district is out of compliance and can be sued.”
- “…At least 1 TA opening at North, 6 at Oak Hill, in light of resignations due to pay, and folks declining positions due to pay as well. 5 openings at South, 1 at Bigelow, 2 at NECP, and those are the only ones we know about.”
- “In October, the fourth month of fiscal year 2024, the City of Newton had already surpassed the investment income it had projected for the entire fiscal year of 2024.”
- “My message to parents: We understand how challenging this is and how much of a disruption this is. We have seen the kind of harm that our kids have been going through for years, and to go back before we have a fair contract would just be to do more harm.”
- “There was a little bit of progress when we were in the negotiation room today. They were asking us questions about our proposals. We got to explain some of our proposals to them in return, which was great. That was more of a conversation that had been happening previously, so that was good. It was still less progress than we would have liked.”
- “The School Committee has [from the NTA] a large set of proposals that we believe we can reach tentative agreement on almost immediately.”
NTA President Mike Zilles then responded to questions, saying in part:
- “Our position on COLAs would be different if we were also able to achieve many of the other goals for the educators and students of Newton. …When we had a COLA proposal on the table on December 18, that was as part of a package where it was understood that all of our other proposals would be agreed to. The School Committee had asked to present our proposals that way so we did. …The COLA proposal that we have on the table now does not anticipate that the School Committee would meet all of our other proposals. It anticipates that they meet none of them. If they meet some of them, then of course there’s there’s going to be a reduction in what we would expect to win in the COLA. We do understand that the City’s resources are finite.”
- “These fines as you know will escalate as the week goes on and they’ll grow at a pretty fast pace. …I worry that the School Committee is going to be emboldened by this and think ‘we will just wait them out.'”
- “We will not go back unless we get a fair contract that meets the needs of our educators and our students.”
School Committee Press Conference
At the School Committee press conference, School Committee Chair Chris Brezski and Mayor Fuller spoke.
School Committee Chair Brezski noted that the Middlesex Superior Court had begun levying fines against the NTA while the teachers are on strike, starting at $25,000 for that day and doubling each day that week. He quoted the judge saying that if the strike remains in place on Friday, there will be a court hearing at noon that day “to discuss a more meaningful approach to ensuring compliance with the law.”
Brezski noted that on Tuesday, students will be out of school for the third day. “This is detrimental to their health and well-being, and it’s particularly harmful to our most vulnerable students.” He said the School Committee again asked the NTA to continue negotiations while ending the strike and allowing teachers and students back into classrooms, and the NTA again refused. He also said:
- “There is no reason for this strike, and it will do nothing to further our negotiations.”
- “We agree that our educators need a competitive wage, and we agree that the district needs to provide mental health supports and social services to students. And we do need smaller class sizes, particularly in our high schools.”
- “We had been addressing these issues before this unnecessary strike. Incremental funds …in December already allow us to plan for the addition of five social workers in our elementary schools and …reduce our high-school STEM class sizes next year [and] allowed us to put forth a …compensation package …competitive with even the most districts in the Commonwealth.”
- “However, if we met all of the current demands of the union, we could not reduce our high-school class sizes or add social workers in our elementary schools. …We believe we would have to lay off 60 educators within a year and an equal amount over the following five years.”
- “[The negotiations today were] still not terribly productive, …however, at least now, everything is on the table. The union has finally put out their full package of demands.”
- “As a parent, …the thought of [the union] ‘holding out as long as it takes’ is devastating.”
- “We will continue to work to returning our students to the classroom as soon as possible.”
Mayor Fuller said, in part:
- “I am imploring the union to have teachers back in the classroom while the contract is being negotiated. I believe in collective bargaining, but I do not support illegal strikes.
- “[The School Committee’s current offer] will provide competitive wages and benefits to our teachers without requiring layoffs of essential employees — including teachers or police officers, firefighters, …librarians… .”
Adam Bernstein and Bruce Henderson contributed reporting for this article.
