Local

No school Wednesday for Woburn students as the teacher strike continues into 3rd day

WOBURN, Mass. — Schools will be closed in Woburn for a third straight day on Wednesday as the teachers’ strike continues.

About 500 teachers in Woburn headed back to the picket lines Tuesday as their strike entered a second day. The strike is continuing even as a judge has ordered the teachers to return to their classrooms.

“We’re making progress, we’re at the table. We’ve been at the table for 10-12 hours every day, at a certain point, you get to a point where you need to regroup that’s what we’ve done,” said Mayor Scott Galvin.

The court order came down late Monday night. Woburn Teachers Association President Barbara Locke told Boston 25 News the union would continue to strike in spite of the court order and any potential fines they could face.

“We did not want to be in this place,” said Locke. “We do not celebrate this illegal thing, however, sometimes you just have to do what you have to do.”

Locke said Monday’s negotiations got off to a slow start, but progress was made in the afternoon and evening. She said the union was willing to bargain all night, but the other side walked out at 8 p.m.

“It is an atrocity to the families and to the students that the district, the mayor, the school committee, is quitting on our kids,” said Locke. “It is not a good thing, and we are just very frustrated.”

According to a city spokesperson, the union wants 14.75% raises for teachers. The city has offered 10% and said anything more would result in funding cuts for student programs and resources.

Another major sticking point to the union is securing a higher salary for paraprofessionals, who currently make around $22,000 a year.

The union argues this low salary is causing high turnover.

The city has said paraprofessionals’ salaries are usually addressed separately, outside of teacher contracts, but they are committed to raising their salary.

Boston 25 News spoke to Woburn High School student Joey Motroni, who has cerebral palsy and works with a paraprofessional every day. Since starting high school, he has already had four different paraprofessionals.

“It is frustrating at times, it’s basically like going back to square one,” Joey Motroni said. “I want them to feel comfortable talking to me just throughout the day, I want it to feel less like a job and more like a connection.”

Motroni’s family said they support the strike if it means helping paraprofessionals secure a better salary.

“It’s been frustrating for us as a family and also for Joey and his education, having to build relationships again and having them have to get trained again,” said Joey’s mother Rianne Motroni. “It’s just not enough for a person to live on in this area.”

In court Monday, attorneys for the city of Woburn and the state of Massachusetts argued the strike should end immediately as it is causing irreparable harm to students, but the union’s attorney said any days missed can easily be made up as snow days or accounted for in some other way.”It’s really frustrating when their lawyers are representing that it’s just like a snow day,” said Woburn Mayor Scott Galvin. “It’s not like a snow day, it’s children being deprived of their education.”

Contract negotiations are set to resume Tuesday at 9:30 a.m.

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