The state’s largest teachers union is seeking to change state law so educators can leave their classrooms for the picket line, after a series of illegal strikes in recent years led to some hefty fines but also new contracts.þþThe Massachusetts Teachers Association says giving educators the legal right to strike is necessary to break logjams in contract talks and compel local school committees to bargain in good faith. Currently, many school committees do “sort of an intentional slowdown and don’t really come to the table ready to negotiate,” said Max Page, the association’s president.þþ“We believe that the right to strike is a fundamental labor and human right and that it is wrong to exclude public sector workers from that,” said Page, emphasizing a strike should be a last resort. The MTA represents 115,000 educators and support staff in most school districts in Massachusetts, including Cambridge, Lexington, and Newton, and several public colleges.þþThe move comes as Massachusetts schools struggle to overcome learning losses from the closure of classrooms during the pandemic. Tensions also remain high following the acrimonious reopening of school buildings, with a growing number of districts and unions locked in contentious contract negotiations. A few of the MTA’s local affiliates in recent months have broken state law and gone on strike in Haverhill, Malden, and Brookline. Contract deals quickly followed.þþThe legislation, which is expected to be filed this month, would extend the right to strike to all public sector workers except those in public safety.þþThe effort has sparked a backlash since the MTA unveiled it on Dec. 8 as part of its legislative priorities, which also include securing more state funding for public schools and public colleges. State Education Commissioner Jeffrey Riley recently blasted the push for strikes.þþ“I want to be clear I’m a supporter of collective bargaining rights, but I just think this is a bridge too far at this time,” Riley said at a December state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education meeting.þþ“Our focus needs to be on the kids. The kids need to be in school.”þþMary Tamer, the Massachusetts director at Democrats for Education Reform, accused the MTA of putting adult interests ahead of students.þþ“Further disrupting their education would be so detrimental and harmful to their well-being,” she said.þþThe MTA is making its push as the labor movement nationwide resurges with workers organizing in such businesses as Amazon and Starbucks to secure higher wages and safer working conditions. Teachers strikes also have been on the upswing, with unions in Los Angeles, Chicago, and Minneapolis conducting work stoppages in recent years.þþIn many ways, the pandemic has mobilized Massachusetts educators to advocate for better safety measures and higher pay. The MTA urged members not to enter school buildings to teach in the early days of the pandemic until officials could prove conditions were safe, creating showdowns in some districts.þþThe Boston Teachers Union, which belongs to the American Federation of Teachers, supports legalizing strikes.þþ“Strikes certainly should be a last resort, but sometimes it’s necessary, if you have tried all other means to advocate for what you know your students need,” Jessica Tang, the Boston union’s president, said in a statement.þþJust 12 states, including California and Vermont, allow educators the right to strike, according to the MTA. Massachusetts has forbidden public sector workers from striking since at least the 1960s, when the state granted them the right to unionize. Unions that strike face hefty fines from the state for each day of the strike.
Source: bostonglobe.com
