Stoneham Schools Declare Impasse In ESP Contract Negotiations

STONEHAM, MA — Contract negotiations between the Stoneham Public Schools and union education support professionals may be headed to mediation after a recent announcement and formal filing from the Stoneham School Committee.

The committee on Wednesday said parties had reached an impasse in negotiations after talks to date failed to produce a new contract.

The committee, Stoneham Schools Superintendent David Ljungberg later told Patch, filed for mediation on Wednesday morning.

“The School Committee believes that having a mediator at the table represents the most expedient path to a settled contract,” the committee said in its statement.

The Stoneham Teachers Association responded Wednesday afternoon, saying "We are not at an impasse."

"This is the School Committee walking away from negotiations and creating a potential crisis in our schools," the Teachers Association said in a statement.

The Teachers Association said parties have made progress at negotiating sessions. A declared impasse and a call for mediation, the union said, "will just delay settling a fair contract."

"This is an unnecessary maneuver by the School Committee," the union said.

Stoneham’s last contract for education support professionals expired in June, 2021. This contract is separate from the district's contract with teachers, which was settled in July of this year. Writing on its website, the Massachusetts Teachers Association defines the category of education support professionals broadly, including maintenance, transportation, paraprofessional, and classroom aide jobs, among other things.

The School Committee this week said negotiations have been ongoing, with parties engaging in “several productive contract negotiating sessions.”

Talks, the committee said, have indeed made progress.

“We are working in good faith to reach terms that reflect the primary goal of putting children first and communicating the high value we place on the work of ESPs for our students, while also recognizing the fiscal realities of our time,” the committee said.

The committee detailed contract offers including a plan to cut two pay steps for education support professionals to allow individuals to reach higher levels of pay more quickly.

The committee said its proposed contract would offer salary increases between 13 and 15 percent for entry-level education support professionals in the first year alone.

The committee outlined additional increases between 30 and 44 percent for annual longevity payments alongside a professional development benefit which officials described as "a new program that shows the value the Committee recognizes for ESPs that want to further their learning."

The committee said its proposal "anticipates the ability to obtain the appropriations necessary to fund the contract without facing a significant risk of budgetary cuts, such as layoffs”

“The union has rejected this offer, alleging that ‘there is other money available,’” the committee said, though.

Demands to “find the money” for certain union requests, the committee said, would require the Stoneham Schools to pull funding from other sources, of which personnel costs represent the largest budget line item.

“De-funding line items to meet the STA’s salary demands would invariably require us to implement layoffs, a step that would be harmful to students,” the committee said.

School officials this week shared a line-item budget for public viewing available here.

School officials, overall, said negotiators had reached an agreement on “many items.” The district’s contract with its education support professionals, though, remained unsettled as of Wednesday.

Officials, as a result, are looking to bring in a third-party mediator to oversee future negotiations.

“When a party files for mediation, a skilled and trained facilitator comes to the table to help the parties move past their impasse and settle the contract,” the School Committee said this week. “No one walks away — the mediator joins the parties at the table.”

Contacted after the School Committee’s statement Wednesday morning, Ljungberg said officials asked the Stoneham Teachers Association last week about filing a joint petition for mediation.

Without a reply, Ljungberg said, the School Committee moved forward with a petition to the Department of Labor Relations to bring in a mediator.

The Teachers Association continued its statement Wednesday saying "the single most important thing the School Committee can do is not quit the recent productive negotiating sessions."

"The best thing the School Committee can do right now to support our students’ long-term future is to return to the bargaining table," the union said.

"We hope the school committee will return to the bargaining table and quickly settle a contract that will create an environment that will attract and retain quality educators," union officials continued.