| 04/26/2007 |
| Paraprofessionals approve contract with key provision |
| Maria Garriga , Register Staff |
|
NEW HAVEN — The schools
paraprofessional union, Local 3429, narrowly approved a new contract
Wednesday afternoon with a long sought-after clause regarding
restrictions on teaching responsibilities and improved opportunities
for increased pay. Paraprofessionals will also be required to
pay an additional 1 percent each year on health insurance premiums.
The local has 439 members, but fewer than 200 attended. The official
vote count was not released by union officials.
"The main issue for these negotiations was to unfreeze the steps and stronger language to prevent the Board of Education from using paras as teachers," said Kip Lockhart, Council 4 representative for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, the umbrella organization for Local 3429. "We feel that the contract is a very fair one. These are hardworking folks," said Catherine Sullivan-DeCarlo, spokeswoman for the New Haven Public Schools. "The bottom line is, we’re underpaid. We do a lot of work. We do a lot of the same work teachers do," said John Duarte, a paraprofessional from New Haven. "Everybody in the system is great, but there is nothing wrong with progress and making more money," said Sean Hardy, a paraprofessional with 10 years of experience. The paraprofessionals have long argued that city schools inappropriately assign them to work as long-term substitutes when teachers are absent for weeks or even months. Without training or additional pay, they are required to teach lesson plans in the absence of a teacher. Most teachers have a master’s degree or at least a bachelor’s degree and state certification to teach specific grades and subjects; most paraprofessionals are not certified to teach, and the highest level of education for many is a two-year associate’s degree. Lockhart said that the union has filed complaints of unfair labor practices and grievances about this in the past, but has never had protection "with stronger language" through the contract. The new four-year contract allows principals to assign paraprofessionals to cover classes for several hours, although the language is not specific enough to satisfy some of the workers. The contract states that "paraprofessionals may supervise classroom for short periods when teacher is absent for a meeting, parent conference or emergency .... supervision is defined as monitoring the classroom." While some paraprofessionals praised the new contract for giving larger increases to those lower on the pay scale (which bottoms out at $14,000 annually), those at the top of the pay scale said they resent getting smaller raises. "It makes my degree worthless," said one, who declined to give her name. |