AGAWAM — Just days before the start of their summer break, Agawam teachers and education support paraprofessionals overwhelmingly approved a new three-year collective bargaining agreement.
The new contract was ratified overwhelmingly by members of the Agawam Education Association on June 20. The School Committee then approved the contract with a 7-0 vote at its June 24 meeting.
With the new contract, teachers and paraprofessionals will receive a 2.5% salary raise in the first two years and a 3% raise in the third year for a total salary increase of 8%.
“The contract we settled on was fair to both sides,” said Mitch Chambers, a high school teacher who co-chaired the AEA’s negotiations committee. “Our members were happy with the end result — 96% of the 400 teachers [Unit A] voted in favor of the contract while 70% of the 123 ESPs [Unit B] voted in favor.”
Unit B members have very different work conditions, educational backgrounds and licensure requirements than teachers, but are still part of the union. “Teachers appreciate and respect the hard work of paras, and realize they’re integral to the educational process in the classroom,” said Chambers.
The pay boost does not include “step raises” that increases the basic pay from one step of the salary schedule to the next higher step. The contract — effective Sept. 1 — does not require a vote by the City Council.
Other than salaries, the new contract makes few changes to the current contract. However, one benefit that was negotiated will help the district’s “seasoned” teachers, said Chambers. “We created a Step 25. Our current contract’s highest step is a Step 13.”
A teacher who has taught in Agawam for 25 years total, with a minimum of 20 years, will qualify for this new step. “It’s a way to acknowledge their dedication to Agawam and maybe encourage teachers to keep working a little longer,” said Chambers.
“I think it’s fair to say that everyone would like ‘more,’ but we still have concerns with inflation and the fact that our insurance went up 8%,” he added. “Non salary issues are a continuing discussion — school safety is a primary ongoing issue.”
Chambers said the AEA was able to form a joint committee of teachers and administrators to address safety issues in the buildings. “We’re hoping that members of the School Committee will also be a part of those discussions so they can hear directly from parents, students, teachers and staff.”
According to Chambers, negotiations were “cordial and respectful” of both sides. “It was a pleasure working with the School Committee’s team. Differences were discussed and argued, and we were able to come to a mutual agreement — just like negotiations are supposed to.”
School Committee member Shelley Borgatti-Reed, who led negotiations for the School Committee, said that the new contracts “represent a fair and reasonable compromise” for both teachers and taxpayers.
Throughout the negotiation process, Borgatti-Reed said the committee “prioritized recognizing the vital role our teachers and paras play in student success and worked toward an agreement that reflects their value and honors their contributions to our schools and community.”
Borgatti-Reed said one of the major sticking points during negotiations centered around time off and the inclusion of some additional benefits. “We resolved them by comprising on both sides of the table,” she said.
Both Chambers and Borgatti-Reed said salaries and benefits outlined in the contract are comparable to other school districts in the area.
“Although contracts vary between communities, these contracts align closely with agreements reached in surrounding districts,” said Borgatti-Reed.
Chambers said comparing just salaries is hard to do because there are many factors, such as level of education and number of years teaching, that determine the teacher’s salary.
Other factors, such as number of days worked per year, can vary, as well as the percentage of districts that contribute toward health insurance and especially the environment of the buildings.
“Although Agawam is not at the top of the list, we feel we are happy with where we are,” he said.
Chambers said negotiating the new contract was easier than bargaining the last contract — despite the fact that the AEA was bargaining a contract for paras and teachers simultaneously.
Bargaining the current teacher contract in 2022 and 2023 ended in a stalled negotiation, and then mediation. It took three votes, and almost two years of negotiations, to pass with 75% of the vote — which is the minimum required by AEA Bylaws.
“I feel the last contract stalled for many reasons, but mostly a lack of communications and involvement by the membership,” said Chambers, who has negotiated four contracts. “This time, we were able to have open negotiations, with silent bargaining representatives from Units A and B at the meetings.”
Chambers said that at most bargaining meetings, there were about 100 members present to watch the process and contribute during the AEA’s caucus sessions. “Our members knew exactly what was going on and the progress that was made. That was the major factor in the teacher contract passing with 96% of the vote on the first try.”
One major issue that AEA was proud to have accomplished, with the help and professionalism of the district, said Chambers, is that Agawam didn’t lay off any teachers, and there has been no reduction in workforce.
“Many districts in the area have had to lay off teachers. We are fortunate that we didn’t have to deal with that issue. We want to thank the superintendent and the mayor for their foresight in preventing layoffs,” he said.
In addition to Chambers, members of the AEA bargaining committee included AEA President Curtis Miarecki, Executive Director Lisa Bruno, Unit A Co-Chair Tricia Bushey, a teacher at Phelps Elementary School, and Unit B Chair Carla Chase, a library media assistant at Clark Elementary School.
The School Committee’s negotiation team consisted of members Borgatti-Reed and A.J. Christopher, Superintendent Sheila Martin, Assistant Superintendent Cheryl Salomao, Business Manager Rob Clickstein, Mayor Christopher Johnson and attorney Russell Dupre, lawyer for Agawam Public Schools.
Chambers said at the last bargaining meeting when there was agreement to the final document, all members of both teams shook hands and shared smiles. “We were all happy to have a final document that we were proud to have put together.”
