APEA Members Agree: Continue to Negotiate
Members of the Amherst Pelham Education Association rallied at the district offices prior to their most recent bargaining session on March 24/. Photo: Allegra Clark
Source: Amherst Pelham Education Association
Amherst Pelham Education Association (APEA) held an in-person membership meeting on March 29 to take a “straw poll” on the current offers from the Amherst School Committee. The membership voted overwhelmingly to reject the offer of 2.75% cost-of-living pay increase over the course of three years and to continue to negotiate. They gave the bargaining team a mandate to continue negotiations in the hope that a resolution can be achieved at the next scheduled bargaining session on April 11 at Amherst Regional Middle School.
The APEA bargaining team acknowledged some of the recent gains in the bargaining process, such as the School Committee dropping the proposal to add two more working days to the calendar, and agreeing to some differential pay for specialized roles.
“We are looking forward to getting a fair contract resolved,” said Mangala Jagadeesh, Unit A Elementary co-chair. “We continue to advocate for our educators and our students.”
The APEA expresses gratitude for the many people who came out to support educators at the last bargaining session and welcomes continuing support at the next session on April 11, when another rally will be held at Amherst Regional Middle. For more information contact: executiveboard@amherstpelhamed.org and coccoc73@gmail.com (413-345-8893, Claire Cocco, Communications Chair for APEA)