On Wednesday, March 18, the Winthrop School Committee held a Special Meeting to present a comprehensive counterproposal to the Winthrop Teachers Association (WTA), aimed at advancing ongoing collective bargaining negotiations. The proposal would increase staff wages by $2.6 million and benefits by $468,000 over the next 3 years. The presentation outlined a path forward that addresses the Union’s top priorities while maintaining the fiscal stability mandated by the community’s recent override.
Throughout the negotiation process, the Committee has recognized the core priorities identified by the WTA: increased compensation for veteran teachers, improved wages for ESPs, and the establishment of paid parental leave.
While both parties agree that staff deserve competitive compensation, the School Committee is focused on balancing that priority with the district’s budget constraints. The WTA’s March 4, 2026 proposals would increase spending by more than $3.78 million across all units over the first three years, in addition to more than $1.5 million in expanded benefits.
Town Council President Jim Letterie was on hand to provide an overview of the town’s budget and the fiscal framework in which the Committee is working. The School Committee has reiterated that any new agreement must maintain long-term district stability without jeopardizing current staffing levels or student programs.
The Committee presented its counterproposals across the nearly 58 items currently under negotiation, including:
Annual Salary Increases: Three distinct salary advancement options were proposed for both the ESP and Teacher units with an emphasis on the top steps, where 50-70% of staff will be over the course of the contract.
Paid Parental Leave: A new, district-funded paid parental leave benefit that includes both birthing and non-birthing parents.
On its website, the School Committee has published a detailed presentation outlining the current proposals, the financial parameters of the district budget, frequently asked questions, and the structural impact of the recent override.
Community members are encouraged to review the full informational deck and track the status of negotiations by visiting: https://www.winthrop.k12.ma.us/about/school-committee/collective-bargaining
The Committee will continue to share updates as negotiations progress and remains committed to frequent meetings with the Union to move the process forward.
The School Committee expressed appreciation for the community’s continued engagement throughout the negotiation process.
The WTA provided a statement in response to the school committee’s update on the negotiations.
“The WTA’s goals remain the same as it has been for the past year. The fact is that we need to reach fair agreements as soon as possible,” the statement read. “We are now 200 plus days without a new contract. We have educators in our school making little more than $20,000 per year. We have a parental leave policy that is negligible, and is unfair for many new parents. Too many teachers are leaving Winthrop every year for other districts that pay veteran teachers higher wages.
“We’ve presented the School Committee with a path towards settling our contracts, and we will continue to work with them to address these issues. We are committed to put in the work to settle a contract that our schools and members deserve.”