A Message from Beth Kontos
Wow-what a busy month we’ve had (our members pictured above at the 2022 Leadership Conference).
It’s the height of election season, and we’re on the verge of winning a dedicated funding source for public education and transportation with Question 1! Monday is the deadline to apply for public service loan forgiveness waiver and potentially have tens of thousands of dollars in debt eliminated. And our locals continue to negotiate and win strong contracts with better pay, benefits, and working conditions.
It was wonderful to see many local leaders and members at our 2022 Leadership Conference, held earlier this month at the Boston Teachers Union Hall! We had a great lineup of speakers and workshops, and attendees left as stronger, more confident leaders. Read on for important information and ways to take action.
Apply for the Limited Public Service Loan Forgiveness Waiver By October 31!
Monday is the deadline to apply for the Limited Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Waiver, which could grant you significant amounts of loan forgiveness. Some AFT Massachusetts members have seen tens of thousands of dollars in debt wiped out entirely!
PSLF cancels federal student debt for people like teachers and school staff, college faculty and staff, healthcare workers and other public employees after they pay 10 years’ worth of student loan payments. The Limited PSLF Waiver was announced by the Biden-Harris Administration last year, and it temporarily relaxes many of the PSLF Program’s traditional rules and enables borrowers to receive credit toward loan forgiveness for past periods of repayment that would not otherwise qualify for PSLF.
Don’t miss this important deadline of October 31 to get forgiveness, or to get much closer to forgiveness, through the waiver. For more info on the Limited PSLF Waiver, AFT Massachusetts members can visit https://www.mass.gov/ago/PSLFWaiver. Summer, an online student loan management platform that is free to AFT members, can also help guide borrowers through applying for the Limited PSLF Waiver.
Vote Yes on Questions 1 and 4 By November 8 – and Volunteer!
Election Day is Tuesday, November 8, and we’re working hard to pass two important ballot questions: the Fair Share Amendment (Question 1) and the Work and Family Mobility Act (Question 4).
A YES on Question 1 will would create a 4% tax on the portion of a person’s annual income above $1 million and require – in the state constitution – that the funds be spent only on transportation and public education. 99% of us won’t pay a penny more, and we’ll have $2 billion a year, every year, for better roads, safer bridges, reliable public transportation, and public schools from pre-K through college. A YES vote is key to making the long-term investments we need in our schools: from hiring more teachers, paraprofessionals, and counselors to provide students with more one-one attention, to upgrading our crumbling school buildings with better air conditioning, heating, and ventilation.
Have you volunteered for Question 1 yet? This week is your last chance to help us win this transformational funding for our schools, and we need all hands on deck to Get-Out-The-Vote (GOTV). Many AFT Massachusetts locals are holding GOTV canvasses and phone banks in support of Question 1, and you can always find a campaign event near you at https://www.fairsharema.com/volunteer. NEXT SATURDAY: We are co-hosting an Educators and Allies for Fair Share and Safer Roads rally and canvass with Representative Ayanna Pressley! Join us on November 5 at 1 p.m. at the Boston Teachers Union Hall! #GOTV
We’ve been working to pass the Fair Share Amendment on the ballot for years, but another question is more recent. A YES on Question 4 will keep in place the “Work and Family Mobility Act,” a current state law that allows all drivers in Massachusetts to be properly vetted for drivers licenses (by providing proof of identity, date of birth, and residency), pass required tests and buy insurance, regardless of their immigration status. A YES vote means safer roads and better tools for law enforcement to do their jobs. In 17 states with similar laws, passage led to declines in uninsured drivers and hit-and-run crashes. That’s why this measure is endorsed by over 60 law enforcement officials statewide — including most sheriffs, district attorneys, and all 42 police chiefs in the Massachusetts Major Cities Chief of Police Association.
Please make sure you vote YES on Questions 1 and 4 on or before Tuesday, November 8th!
Local Contract Campaigns Notch Wins, Others Working Hard at the Bargaining Table
After a contract campaign that brought hundreds of educators, elected officials, and community members together to demand a living wage, the Lawrence Federation of Paraprofessionals (LFP) has reached a tentative agreement on a historic contract settlement! The LFP pushed for months to lift its members out of poverty and win a living wage for all members, and their tentative agreement raises the minimum wage for instructional paraprofessionals in Lawrence from $14.79 to $21 an hour, while delivering major increases to maximum wages and pay for lunch aides.
The Berklee Faculty Union also reached a tentative agreement this month, achieving significant progress on all fronts: wages, workload, equity, facilities, and additional benefits for full-time faculty, part-time faculty, Conservatory faculty, and retirees. Congratulations to the Lawrence paras and the Berklee faculty on their victories!
AFT Massachusetts members in Chelmsford, New Bedford, and at Essex Tech are all working hard to win strong contracts with better pay, benefits, and working conditions, and our team has been busy supporting them during events, petition drives, and bargaining sessions. Check out this story on the New Bedford Federation of Paraprofessionals’ campaign for a living wage!
Lawrence Paraprofessionals Reach Historic Settlement
After a contract campaign that brought hundreds of educators, elected officials, and community members together to demand a living wage, the Lawrence Federation of Paraprofessionals (LFP) has reached a tentative agreement on a historic contract settlement. The LFP pushed for months to lift its members out of poverty and win a living wage for all members. LFP members are overwhelmingly Lawrence Residents, LPS parents, and women of color. The LFP fought to ensure that this new contract created more educational stability for students, greater support for families, and better working conditions for staff.
“For the first time in over two decades, we are seeing some of our lowest-paid workers get a real raise,” said Juan Santiago, a lunch aide and negotiation team member. “One of our lunch aides has been employed by LPS for 25 years and was only making $16.64 an hour. After this agreement, between the increase in hourly wages plus the new stipend, this member will see an almost $9,500 increase to her annual wages in the first year alone.” READ MORE.
2023 Scholarship Program
Every year AFT Massachusetts awards thousands of dollars in scholarships to eligible high school seniors who are dependents of AFT Massachusetts members. The awards, named in honor of former AFT leaders Kathy Kelley, Albert Shanker and Sandra Feldman, and for long-time AFT Massachusetts field representative Jay Porter, are awarded on the basis of a labor history exam administered by the Massachusetts AFL-CIO.
“Now more than ever, it’s important for young people to understand the role of labor unions in our country’s history,” said AFT Massachusetts President Beth Kontos. “AFT Massachusetts is proud to offer these college scholarships to students who are part of our union family.” The scholarship applications are due by December 16, 2022. READ MORE.
Don’t miss this life-changing opportunity to get out from under the burden of student debt—start your PSLF application today!
_(1).jpg)
The temporary Public Service Loan Forgiveness waiver expires on Oct. 31. Most AFT members who have federal student loans can qualify for PSLF, which allows you to have the entire remaining balance of your direct federal loans forgiven after 120 qualifying payments. In the last 12 months during the waiver period, thousands of people have had their loans forgiven, and thousands more have gained credit for additional payments that move them closer to forgiveness. But this waiver ends on Monday, Oct. 31.
Don’t delay! Don’t miss this life-changing opportunity to get out from under the burden of student debt—start your PSLF application today.
Use the Department of Education’s PSLF Help Tool, located at https://studentaid.gov/pslf, and log in to your Federal Student Aid (FSA) account, to start your application today. Need more information? Check our website https://aft.org/pslf and register for an upcoming AFT Student Debt Clinic webinar here https://cvent.me/17XZka.
2002 Leadership Conference
.png)