Marblehead Teachers Strike: Schools Closed Tuesday For 6th Day
MARBLEHEAD, MA — Marblehead Public Schools will be closed for a sixth straight day on Tuesday as negotiations continue between the School Committee and Marblehead Education Association Monday night.
The MEA earlier Monday expressed optimism that face-to-face negotiations could help bridge the gaps in wages and other proposals that have closed classrooms for the past five school days.
"The MEA has wanted face-to-face meetings since mediation began," the MEA said in a statement on Monday afternoon. "The mediation process is designed to limit direct bargaining between the two sides, which is why we were not anxious to adopt it.
"Now that we are finally meeting face-to-face, we are confident that educators and school committee members speaking directly and honestly to each other will generate movement toward a fair settlement that will reopen the schools as soon as possible."
While sides over the weekend reached an agreement on a proposed joint school safety task force, wages continue to be a roadblock with the MEA pushing the School Committee to seek a tax override large enough to "fully fund" schools, including the new teacher salaries, and the School Committee looking for a smaller override that Town Administrator Thatcher Kezer said could be more palatable to residents who have repeatedly voted down general tax override proposals in recent years.
MEA co-President Jonathan Heller on Sunday said the union's proposal would require an average $926 increase in taxes — which he said would equate to $1.72 per day for a house valued at $1.2 million in town — while the town's proposal would require a $300.74 tax override increase.
"The prospects for an override of that size are slim given the town has rejected four of them in the past 20 years," School Committee Chair Jennifer Schaeffner said Friday night. "If it fails then we would have no choice but to reduce staff by about 75 positions. Our goal is to keep teachers and staff employed and keep school class sizes smaller than many surrounding districts."
The MEA was also facing escalating fines for being in contempt of the state law prohibiting public sector union strikes. Fines began at $50,000 per day on Thursday and were prescribed to increase by $10,000 each day the schools are closed.
As acrimony and rhetoric between the sides has risen since MEA members voted to strike on Nov. 8, the union said on Monday: "We see face-to-face bargaining as an important step (in) rebuilding trust."
"Which is needed not only to complete these negotiations but also to work together after this contract is settled," the MEA said.
(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at X/Twitter:
