NEW:Teachers Union Protests Superintendent’s Decision at City Hall
Thursday, May 03, 2012
The Education Association of Worcester (EAW) picketed during the school committee's six o'clock meeting, after calling off a planned protest last Thursday. Last week, EAW President Len Zalauskas told GoLocalWorcester that progress was being made with regards to Boone’s decision that all teachers at Claremont Academy must reapply for their jobs at the end of the school year. Calling off the picket was meant as a gesture of good will, but the union broke off talks with Boone in frustration earlier this week, and the picket was back on.
“It's frustrating because you don't know what's going to happen day-to-day,” Claire Swenson, a special education teacher at Claremont said. "You go in to work, and everyone is still really focused, making the kids the priority. But it's frustrating because we're union members, and our contract was supposed to protect us, but Dr. Boone was able to do this."
25 Percent Not Good Enough
Boone has not backed down from her position, and believes that her decision to make teachers reapply will push Claremont Academy forward. However, as reported in GoLocal earlier this week, Boone did offer one concession. The Superintendent guaranteed that at least 25 percent of teachers would be retained at Claremont. Clearly, this was not acceptable to the union.
“(The 25 percent offer) was extremely insulting to me,” Donielle Moss-Huff, an English teacher at Claremont said. "It's 100 percent or nothing. That's why we have a union, and we stand by the union."
While there is no love lost between the union and Boone, several teachers were even more discouraged about possibly losing the chance to work with students they had built relationships with. They say that the community built at Claremont between teachers, students and parents could be gone in the midst
“I've taught at Claremont for five years,” Swenson said. "I've always had the same population of kids. It's a close-knit community at Claremont. I work on a team with teachers that are very devoted, and parents have gotten to know us. The kids are really upset, and the parents are really upset, because we're the familiar faces that help advocate for their children.
Feeling Disrespected
In the end, many teachers feel it is a matter of respect. They feel that if Boone had taken their work and the stability of the school into account, it may not have come to this protest, and the “prohibited practice” charge the union filed with the Massachusetts Department of Labor.
“It's definitely disrespectful to all the teachers here,” Moss-Huff said. "Claremont has been through so much, and I think the number one thing the kids need is stability."
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