Malden

Members of the Malden Education Association went on strike for one day on Oct. 17 for some of the same reasons Haverhill educators struck that day: better pay and working conditions, and to support students and families.

Pay for classroom aides was at the core of this strike. In Malden, as in Haverhill, the members talked of needing to “raise the pay of Education Support Professionals above the poverty level,” according to MTA Today. On that score, the MEA made progress, with the new contract providing a nearly 30 percent increase for ESPs. Teachers and administrators won smaller, but still significant, cost of living adjustments.

The Boston Globe reported, “The contract also contains new language to determine the size of caseloads for school social workers, psychologists, occupational therapists, and educators who provide special education services; plus a commitment from the School Committee to push back against evictions during the academic year.”

That final point was the most unusual, with the MEA making housing insecurity for students and their families a focus of the strike and the school committee agreeing to take a stand on the issue.

Educators in Massachusetts have long been making the case that educators’ working conditions are student learning conditions. In this and other recent strikes, they were also making a broader case that student living conditions have an impact on teaching and learning and, therefore, are legitimate topics to discuss at the bargaining table.