Photo: Courtesy of the Newton Teachers Association
NEWTON, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — Nearly 100 Newton educators and their supporters held another rally outside Newton City Hall Sunday.
People held signs that read "Newton Educators on Strike," "Fair Contract Now," and "Support Newton Educators for Better Schools."
Newton teachers have walked the picket line since the Newton Teachers Association overwhelmingly voted to strike, causing more than 20 public schools in the district to close Friday.
The NTA and the Newton School Committee have been at an impasse over a new contract since October 2022.
The union is pushing for better pay, a living wage for teaching assistants, limiting hikes in health insurance costs, enhanced parental leave, more teacher prep time, and more support staff and social workers for students in elementary and middle schools.
The school committee says it is offering competitive compensation for teachers. According to Mayor Ruthanne Fuller, if the district needs more funding, voters will have to pass a Proposition 2½ override, a tax increase.
Both sides returned to the negotiation table on Sunday after talks failed the previous day. Spanish teacher Ana Tellado told WBZ NewsRadio at Sunday's rally that she and many of her colleagues are nervous about the length of the strike.
"We are worried and scared that this is gonna go on and on, judging from the way that the negotiations are moving so slowly," Tellado said.
However, Tellado said that ending the strike was not an option.
"We’re hoping that the mayor and the school committee will get the point that we are unified and this strike is not going to end until we have a fair contract on the table," Tellado said.
Teacher strikes are illegal in Massachusetts. On Friday, a Middlesex Superior Court judge ruled that teachers had until 3 p.m. Sunday to cancel the strike, or else face thousands of dollars in fines. The deadline came and went with teachers still on strike.
WBZ's Suzanne Sausville (@WBZSausville) reports.
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