With the Newton teachers strike dragging along at 13 days, and nine days of class canceled so far — among the longest in recent Massachusetts history — members of the Newton City Council on Tuesday called for an immediate compromise that gets kids back in school.
The Newton Teachers Association and the Newton School Committee were continued negotiations Tuesday, but have still not reached an agreement. The district said around 7:30 p.m. that schools would remain closed Wednesday.
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At a city council news conference earlier Tuesday, Council President Marc Laredo said its members had "grave concern" over the protracted negotiations "as our community seems to be torn apart."
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"This is not good for our teachers, this is not good for our staff, this is not good for families, this is not good for community members as a whole, and, most importantly — most importantly — the people that we care about most, our children, are suffering because they are not in school," Laredo continued.
The council doesn't oversee Newton Public Schools or its budget, but the council has issued letters to Mayor Ruthanne Fuller, the school committee and the union urging them "to reach a fair, sustainable agreement" to get kids and teachers back in class. Backed by other members of the council, Laredo reiterated that call Tuesday, acknowledging that whatever agreement is reached will likely make everyone a little bit unhappy.
"This strike has to end. We need to get our kids back in the classroom," he said.
Earlier in the day, the Newton School Committee submitted a new proposal, including an increased cost of living adjustment of between 12-15%. The union rejected the proposal and submitted a counteroffer, according to the chair of the school committee.
Laredo said the council thought the deal seemed fair, though he noted they are not at the bargaining table.
The union is continuing to rack up fines, owing $525,000 as of Tuesday night.
As parents' frustration has grown, one went so far as to file a lawsuit over the strike, saying that while she supports the teachers and wants them to get a new contract, her children need to get back to school.
"We want to be heard. I want to be heard. My daughter wants to be heard. We want a judge to see our pain and get this to an end," said Lital Asher-Dotan, the parent filing lawsuit.
A second family also filed a lawsuit Tuesday. Two parents say their daughter is on an Individualized Education Program and receives special education support four days a week for her learning disability.
The girl's parents claim she is now suffering from emotional distress from her time out of the classroom.
Teachers say they want nothing more than to be back in the classroom.
"We also know that if we go back now. We will never get the mental health supports for kids, we will never get the humane parental leave for teachers, we will never get above poverty level pay for Unit C members," Newton Spanish teacher Denise Cremin said.
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School Committee Chair Chris Brezski has said the two sides were getting closer on many of the issues dividing the district and teachers' union during this contract negotiation. But the biggest sticking point remained, as of Tuesday morning, the teachers salaries, with the chair saying they're 2.75% apart on wages over the life of the four-year contract.
"There was progress. And you know, look, we're checking off boxes of all these other issues, and a lot of them are important issues, don't get me wrong. But at the end of the day, when you're still 20 million dollars apart over the life of the contract, at some point we've got to address that," Brezski said.
Tensions boiled over at the Newton Teachers Association press conference Monday night.
A group of parents hoping to speak with the union directly tried to get into that press conference. And when it was moved to a private space, one man blocked the door in protest.
"These residents shouldn't be kicked out of this building. This is ridiculous. The Mass Teachers Association is trying to run their agenda and it's hurting Newton kids and that's not right. We should be putting the kids first," said Fran Yerardi of Newton.
It's unclear what actions, if any, the court will take on this parent's lawsuit.
