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Governor Healey’s budget reinforces her Administration’s commitment to making a more equitable Commonwealth – one where all residents can access affordable housing, reliable transportation, healthcare, and high-quality public schools.

States are facing unprecedented cuts to federal investment and critical programming. President Trump’s talk of helping working families was clearly nothing more than campaign rhetoric. The rich will get richer over the next four years, further widening the equality gap plaguing our nation.

That makes it even more critical that we have a state budget and agenda that comprehensively reflects the vision we have for Massachusetts. This is a good first step in that work, but we can and should lead in the resistance to the Trump Administration’s dangerous, divisive agenda.

This Saturday, January 25, voters in nine South Shore communities have the opportunity to support a new facility and expansion of South Shore Technical School (SST), which has been providing students and adults throughout the area with the skills to be successful members of the local workforce and regional economy for over six decades.

The vote - taking place in Abington, Cohasset, Hanover, Hanson, Marshfield, Norwell, Rockland, Scituate, and Whitman – will allow the SST School Committee to move forward with plans for a new facility, leveraging $110 million in state funding through the Massachusetts School Building Authority.

“Since they opened their doors, South Shore Tech has lived up to its mission of giving students the skills and support to fulfill their personal goals, bring them economic independence, and help establish themselves as impactful members of their community,” said American Federation of Teachers President Jessica Tang. “SST is an integral part of the local community and regional economy that needs a long-overdue overhaul of its facilities in order to remain a successful and thoughtful leader in vocational education.”

The Commonwealth’s ability to lead and thrive relies on a fully-funded, equitable, and high-quality public education system - from early childhood to post-secondary. We share Governor Healey’s vision of a Commonwealth where we continue to lead in quality education and healthcare while making homes more affordable and transportation more reliable and accessible.

If we are serious about having an economy that works for everyone and eradicating the systemic injustices of our society – we must start with our public schools. Educators and our classrooms open doors for economic opportunity and are critical spaces to foster inclusivity and tolerance. We applaud the Governor for her commitment to supporting behavioral and mental health as we strive to ensure all of our schools are safe and welcoming.

The accomplishments of the last few years – from increasing educator diversity efforts and pipelines into teaching to making community college free for all residents of Massachusetts to providing all children in the state’s public schools with free lunch - have been critical steps forward to ensuring equal opportunities for all students and their families.

After labor leaders across the nation have fought for decades to eliminate two provisions that unfairly penalize thousands of public sector retirees, including many in Massachusetts, President Joseph Biden signed the Social Security Fairness Act into law on January 5. The Act eliminates the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO) provisions of the Social Security law – which both unfairly penalize thousands of public sector retirees in Massachusetts, including school teachers.

“No one who pays into the Social Security system should see the benefits they’ve earned cut or eliminated – especially those who dedicated their careers to public service,” said American Federation of Teachers Massachusetts President Jessica Tang, who was present at the bill signing . “In addition to fair wages, reasonable benefits and safe working conditions, everyone deserves a secure and dignified retirement and we are pleased to say that after years of advocacy, our collective efforts paid off to ensure all workers have access to these benefits.”

On December 21, 2024, the U.S. Senate passed the Social Security Fairness Act to eliminate the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO) provisions of the Social Security law – which both unfairly penalize thousands of public sector retirees in Massachusetts, including school teachers. 

“No one who pays into the Social Security system should see the benefits they’ve earned cut or eliminated – especially those who dedicated their careers to public service,” said American Federation of Teachers Massachusetts President Jessica Tang. “In addition to fair wages, reasonable benefits and safe working conditions, everyone deserves a secure and dignified retirement and we are pleased to say that after years of advocacy, our collective efforts paid off to ensure all workers have access to these benefits.” 

“The consequences of this agreement will be transformative, providing greater stability and support for our educators and our students. This is a win for the entire Chelsea community, and we couldn’t have done it without the sustained organizing and solidarity of educators, families, and community members,” said CTU President Kathryn Anderson.

The agreement includes competitive wage increases for all educators, including the largest wage increase for paraprofessionals that the district has ever seen. Paraprofessionals currently receiving $17.96 an hour will see a 62 percent pay increase over the course of the three-year contract, up to $29.05 per hour. Clerks will see a 31 percent increase over the life of the contract – going from $27.99 to $36.61 per hour.

It also includes the first district-paid parental leave benefit (three weeks the first year of the contract and then six weeks in subsequent years), as well as up to 12 weeks paid leave for members to care for ill family members and up to 35 days from the sick bank.

We need your help to get House Bill 5136 An Act Relative to Benefits for Teachers over the finish line this year!! H.5136 was passed by the House on Thursday, December 11 and combines three important bills that we’ve spent years advocating for - H.2483, An Act Relative to teacher retirement education (Rep. Consalvo), H.2630, An Act relative to benefits for teachers (Rep. Peisch), and S.1702, An Act relative to teacher retirement education (Sen. Miranda).

This bill would allow current non-TARP educators to opt into the enhanced TARP retirement benefits that current employees receive, by paying the difference between what they’ve paid in deductions since 2001 and what they would have paid if they had opted in at the time plus interest. This “make-up amount” could be paid in either a payment plan or in one lump-sum payment. The legislation would require modest additional state funding of teacher retirement benefits, and would result in substantial savings to local school districts through the retirement of R+ educators and the hiring of new teachers at significantly lower salaries.

At the November 19, 2024 meeting of the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE), city and education leaders from Lynn testified in opposition to KIPP Academy Lynn Charter School’s latest attempt to expand in the city – which would siphon off another $24 million each year from Lynn Public Schools (LPS). 

“If this expansion effort is allowed, it would cause irrevocable damage to Lynn’s public schools, which educate all children. At the end of the day, Lynn Public School students and KIPP students are both students of Lynn and should not be pitted against one another,” said President O’Neil, who has been a teacher in the Lynn Public Schools for 32 years. “Unfortunately, we’ve been put in a position where we have to combat false and divisive narratives from those supporting this effort at a time when we should all be focused on supporting our students and getting back to pre-pandemic learning levels.”

The economic development bill passed by the Massachusetts Legislature includes important steps to promote educator diversity throughout the Commonwealth, something the AFT Massachusetts has been working on for years. Many of these proposals stem from the Educator Diversity Act, important legislation championed by the AFT Massachusetts and other education and community advocates since it was first introduced in 2021. 

“Research has shown time and time again that all students benefit from a diverse educator workforce – one that accurately reflects the wonderful diversity of our communities. We’ve spent years advocating for ways to increase diversity among our educators and we look forward to seeing our students benefit from the provisions included in this bill,” said AFT Massachusetts President Jessica Tang. “Today, the Legislature made an important commitment to increasing the number of diverse teachers in every district of the Commonwealth while also providing the workplace conditions to ensure their success, job satisfaction, and retention.”

“Last night’s vote (Tuesday, November 12, 2024) is a critical step forward to correct two injustices millions of retired public sector workers across the country currently face, including public school retirees throughout the Commonwealth.

“Both of these provisions disproportionately impact low-income retirees - including tens of thousands in Massachusetts alone. It's set up so public school teachers and paraprofessionals end up being penalized for working a second or third job in the private sector, which many have to do to get by.  

"Not only do these penalties hurt the economic security of those who have dedicated their lives to serving their communities,  but they disenfranchise many from becoming educators as a second career –  at a time when we’re facing a national teacher shortage."