(Chris Fama/WBZ NewsRadio)
NEWTON, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — The Newton Teachers Union and the school district reached an agreement for a new contract.
This comes after 15 months of negotiations. Over 500 people demonstrated in front of City Hall demanding a new contract in August.
The president of the Newton Teachers Association, Michael Zilles, says the deal came quickly.
"This certainly happened pretty fast, I had a meeting with the mayor on Friday," Zilles said. "When we came to the negotiations table on Tuesday, the school committee was ready to go."
He sees the deal as a positive step forward. Previously, Zilles had said the union was trying to get a 12 percent raise over four years, adjustments to parental leave, and pay increases for behavior therapists.
"We got very reasonable cost of living increases, we were able to win a very progressive parental leave policy for our members," Zilles said. "We improved the working conditions for our aides and our behavior therapists, we established really good parameters for a full-day kindergarten. We had a very good campaign."
Zilles isn't the only one showing enthusiasm for the new deal. One local Newton teacher said she's "excited to hear the outcome."
WBZ NewsRadio's Chris Fama (@CFamaWBZ) reports
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