Beverly Teachers Strike: 'Breakthrough' Sought As Schools Stay Closed For 7th Day Tuesday
BEVERLY, MA — Beverly School Committee Chair Rachael Abell said she was hopeful for a “breakthrough” Monday night after she said the district made a “significant offer” to increase paraprofessional pay as schools remain closed on Tuesday for a seventh straight day amid the teachers’ strike.
Abell said the paraprofessional offer includes a fourth year in the contract proposal — which the Beverly Teachers Association has said is vital to reaching a deal.
“We feel this proposal is a reflection that both the School Committee and BTA understand salaries for our paras are a priority,” Abell said at about 8 p.m.
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BTA co-President Julia Brotherton, however, said the fourth-year proposal was only for paraprofessionals — not all teachers — and downplayed how much progress might have been made on Monday with “almost no movement” on teacher salaries.
“The truth is this,” she said. “We are really not that far apart on wages. We largely have agreement on the first few years, especially on the teachers’ contract. The union is committed to solving the poverty wages paid to our paraprofessionals. But these educators make up a very small total of the almost $75 million school budget.”
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She said the School Committee’s paraprofessional offer was “not nearly enough to settle this contract and end this strike.”
The talks Monday night came after a parent-organized march drew more than 1,000 students and families in support of the striking teachers earlier in the day.
“Given the overwhelming support we’ve been receiving from the community, it’s clear the politicians have a bigger strategy that has nothing to do with our schools,” BTA co-President Andrea Sherman said. “They want to break us. After receiving support from the students and caregivers today, we know educators are on the right side of history here.
“We won’t stop until we fix our schools. It’s all of us — educators and the community standing side-by-side.”
(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at [email protected]. X/Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)
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