Worcester Teachers To Picket Outside Schools Over Contract Impasse

WORCESTER, MA — Members of the largest union representing Worcester educators will hold stand-outs in front of city schools Thursday morning in a bid to draw attention to a lapsed contract, union officials said.

The demonstrations will take place Thursday morning outside Worcester Technical High School, Norrback Avenue, Quinsigamond Elementary, Forest Grove, and Nelson Place schools, according to the Education Association of Worcester.

The educators will hold signs and wear black. Negotiations have been going on for over a year, but the EAW's contract expired in August.

"For well over a year, we have been negotiating in good faith with the school committee and Mayor Joseph Petty to reach an agreement that will recruit, retain, and prioritize our educators and Worcester Public School students," EAW President Melissa Verdier said in a news release. "Teachers, para-educators, drivers, and many other school staff are organizing for agreements that recognize the value of staff and students, meet the rising costs of inflation, and ensure the stability of the Worcester Public Schools."

The union represents over 3,000 Worcester Public Schools employees, including teachers, bus drivers, tutors and education support professionals. The union members are seeking pay on par with surrounding districts, which Verdier said are drawing teachers and other professionals away from Worcester due to better pay.

Superintendent Rachel Monarrez declined to provide a specific timeline for a deal, but said negotiations have been "productive."

"We continue to engage in respectful and productive contract negotiations with the Educational Association of Worcester. We share the desire to reach an agreement soon on behalf of our scholars and the educators who serve them,"

Thursday's standout will take place hours before the Worcester School Committee plans to meet. The agenda includes an executive session to discuss negotiations with three of the EAW's bargaining units.