AMHERST — Teachers at Amherst Regional High School all walked into the school together at 8:15 a.m. Thursday, followed exactly a half-hour later by all high school paraeducators heading into the building at the same time.
The “walk-in,” with most staff dressed in red shirts, was part of the Amherst Pelham Education Association’s push for what it calls a “fair and reasonable” contract, and an attempt to draw attention to the ongoing negotiations with the Amherst and Amherst-Pelham Regional school committees.
The sides were scheduled to resume talks Thursday evening. A schedule that would continue negotiations through June is in place, according to Amherst School Committee Chairwoman Allison McDonald.
The union issued a statement that the cost-of-living adjustment offered by elected officials was first at 2.5% and has since been reduced to 2%. If implemented, the union argues, it would effectively be a pay cut for teachers, paraeducators and office staff.
“With inflation at historically high levels, a 2% increase does not meet the reality of their financial needs,” the union stated, adding that the Social Security Administration provided a 5.9% cost-of-living adjustment in October.
Last summer, the union compromised on a 1% cost-of-living adjustment so that paraeducators would get raises.
In March, the union issued a statement from its president, Meka Magee, expressing concern that its wage concerns were not being addressed, observing that nationally there are educator and school support personnel shortages, leading to burnout.
“Cost-of-living increases that attend to the real needs of educators in this community are crucial to attracting and retaining the talented staff this area expects,” Magee said.
Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.
