Andover
Andover educators hold ‘work safety action’ during pandemic
Andover educators only asked for transparency, information, and cooperation in order to ensure the safety of students, educators and their community. In response, they were met with autocratic decision-making and litigation.
The fall of 2020 was a stressful time for educators, students and parents as the COVID-19 pandemic continued to claim lives across the country and public health guidance for schools changed frequently.
The Andover Education Association attempted to bargain over return-to-school issues but received no counter-proposals from the School Committee. In response, about half of the AEA members engaged in a one-day “work safety action” in which teachers reported to mandatory professional development programs but refused to enter the buildings, instead performing their activities from outside the schools.
Although the AEA did not consider this collective action a strike since the members continued working, the Commonwealth Employment Relations Board disagreed. The CERB determined that the phrase “report for duty” means working “where the employer has ordered its employees to report” and, therefore, failing to do so constituted an unlawful work stoppage.
