Marblehead

Educators in Marblehead were the third of three North Shore locals to go on strike in November. In this affluent town, the educators stayed out for 11 days before ratifying a new contract.

As in Beverly and Gloucester, paraprofessional pay and parental leave were key issues, and so were teacher salaries. Independent analyses showed that Marblehead’s teachers were paid less than teachers in comparable communities.

Members of the Marblehead Education Association struck on the Tuesday after the first two North Shore locals went out, and they stayed out until the day before Thanksgiving. As in Beverly and Gloucester, the missed school days were expected to be made up by carving out time from school vacations. The local also faced significant fines.

In the end, the MEA won much, but not all, that the members were asking for. Paraprofessional pay went up significantly on a percentage basis, but the local noted that it still fell short of a real “living wage” in Massachusetts. Before the strike, the minimum pay for paraprofessionals was $11.93 an hour, which is significantly below the state’s $15 minimum wage for most workers. By the 2027-28 school year, the wage for Marblehead’s paraprofessionals is scheduled to rise to $17.07.

The chair of the School Committee said that funding the new contract would require the community to pass an override of Proposition 2½, something the voters failed to do as recently as 2023, even though the town ranked 28th out of the state’s 351 cities and towns in per capita income.

“The strike illuminated the dysfunction that existed in our town,’’ Marblehead parent Erin Opperman told The Boston Globe. “People are more aware of the issues now and will be in a better position to hold elected officials accountable.’’