Somerville Educators Union Endorses Malden, Haverhill Teacher Strikes

SOMERVILLE, MA — The Somerville Educators Union and six other Massachusetts teachers unions from Andover, Tewksbury, Brookline, Wellesley, Burlington, and Belmont have announced their support for the Haverhill Education Association and Malden Education Association in their pending strikes.

The seven presidents of the unions jointly said that their unions “stand in solidarity with our union siblings fighting for dignity and a fair contract. We condone withholding labor if necessary and encourage HEA and MEA to remain resilient and steadfast in their demands for better working conditions for their members and better learning conditions for their students. We stand ready and willing to offer whatever support may be needed for their strike efforts, including picketing and inducing support by other public employees.”

The presidents said that they, along with their members, would be attending “rolling rallies” over the weekend at Malden and Haverhill City Halls.

Malden and Haverhill Education Association members are currently working to secure the following:

• Living wages for Malden ESPs
• Housing security for our students
• Safe working and learning environments
• Fully staffed and appropriately funded schools
• Raises for teachers, specialists, and related service providers that allow Malden to retain and recruit educators
• Smaller class sizes and caseloads that provide more support for students
• Educator-directed common planning time.

For more information about the strikes, visit the Malden Education Association website here and the Haverhill Education Association website here.