(WHDH) — Teachers unions in Beverly, Gloucester, and Marblehead didn’t reach contract agreements again Monday, so students in the three North Shore communities will stay home from school again on Tuesday.
All three teachers unions have been working with state-appointed negotiators in the hopes of reaching a contract agreement with their respective school committees.
In Marblehead, Monday marked the start of the second school week impacted by the strike.
Marblehead teacher Tawny Callaghan said at a rally Sunday, “Students of Marblehead Public Schools, we are fighting for you to get the best teachers and the safest schools.”
School administrators say they’ve come to an agreement with teachers on establishing a School Safety Committee but continue to work through the rest of the contract.
Meanwhile, in Beverly, it’s been 10 days since teachers voted to go on strike and they’re starting their third week on the picket line.
Andrea Sherman, of the Beverly Teachers Association said, “We have never been more willing to continue this fight.”
The Beverly School Committee says they’ve come to an agreement on class sizes but the two sides are far apart when it comes to teachers’ wages.
Beverly School Committee President and negotiating chair Rachel Abell said the two sides are “millions of dollars apart.”
The mayor says they’ve offered a 27 percent salary increase for teachers and a 43 percent increase for paraprofessionals.
“They told us what we needed to do with the outset we ultimately agreed to them and we dug real deep to get that money across the table,” he said.
Sherman said, “When you start really low, that percentage doesn’t get a paraprofessional to living wage.”
Makari Bailey, a Beverly student, said she had been trying to keep up with her education at home.
“Me and my brother, we can’t really learn the way the teachers would teach us, so we’ve been trying to teach ourselves,” she said.
Another Beverly student, Jireh Chandler, said she understood why her teachers needed to be out on the picket line.
“I love my teachers. I’m so proud of what they’re doing. I’m also looking forward to being in education, so I’m fighting for myself too,” Chandler said.
Gloucester is also 10 days into its strike. With no school Monday, that marks the sixth missed school day for students.
In a letter to families, the superintendent said, “Like you, I am frustrated that we are ten days in … with no resolution to this contract. Our students deserve to be in school. We have worked through the weekend … in the hopes of finding common ground with the union leadership but — unfortunately — the two sides continue to remain apart on key issues like wages.”
School administrators report progress in negotiations regarding paraprofessional training and are working together to achieve competitive pay and benefits but couldn’t find enough common ground to reopen school.’
Since teachers strikes are illegal in Massachusetts, the unions are facing fines for every day they stay on the picket line.
This is a developing news story; stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest details.
