Westfield Education Association

A member of the MTA network

Unit B Settlement Agreement 2023

Hi All Unit B members,

Please take the next several days to look through this document and see what questions you may have about it. On Tuesday, May 30th, at 6PM there will be a zoom meeting where the TA will be explained in more detail and questions can be asked and answered.
After the meeting on the 30th, a new email for the vote will be sent out through SurveyMonkey. Again, if you get this email directly but do not get the SurveyMonkey email, please check your Spam, Social, and/or, Promotions folders. The survey will be open for 24 hours to allow for adequate time to consider your vote and cast it.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact your building rep and they should be able to point you in the right direction!

Matt Wroth, Union Vice President

Unit B Settlement Agreement (5-23-23)

Unit A Tentative Agreement for 2023-2025

Hi All Unit A members,

Below, you will find the Tentative Agreement for the 2023-2025 contract. Please take the next several days to look through this document and see what questions you may have about it. On Tuesday, May 30th, at 3:45 in the Westfield Middle School cafeteria, there will be a general membership where the TA will be explained in more detail and questions can be asked and answered. 

After the meeting on the 30th, a new email for the vote will be sent out through SurveyMonkey. If you do not receive direct emails from me, please contact your building reps and they should be able to point you in the right direction!
-Tom

Unit A 23-25 TA

Dues Deductions for 22-23 School Year

Unit A or B $767 for the year. Breakdown – $204 NEA, $503 MTA, $60 WEA

Unit D is $318.50 if making over $18,000/year. Breakdown – $122.50 NEA, $151 MTA, $45 WEA

Unit D is $270.25 if making under $18,000/year. Breakdown – $122.50 NEA, $102.75 MTA, $45 WEA

MTA update on Early Retirement Incentive

Here is a message from the MTA in regards to the Early Retirement Incentive.

From MTA President Merrie Najimy and Vice President Max Page

Act NOW to push for a favorable committee recommendation for MTA-backed early retirement legislation!

With summer upon us, the MTA continues to push for quick action on our priorities in the State House. Among them is legislation that would ensure dignity in retirement for our members.

H.2620/S.1791, An Act to provide a retirement enhancement opportunity for certain members of the Massachusetts Teachers’ Retirement System, would allow eligible teachers who are in the Massachusetts Teachers’ Retirement System to purchase years of service and age toward their retirement. This bill is still pending in the Joint Committee on Public Service and has not yet been given a hearing date.

Write an email to your legislators asking them to contact the chairs of the committee to request a hearing and a favorable report out of committee.

Record a short video explaining why this proposal is important to you!

The MTA is pushing hard, but your voice is crucial in this fight. Even after the hearing is held, committees are not required to take final action on bills until Feb. 2, 2022. Of the nearly 7,000 bills that have been filed this session, only about 25 have been passed into law so far. This is why we must work together to keep the momentum going and push for what is so vitally important to our members. We ask for your help again today and thank you as always for your tireless efforts.

Once a hearing is scheduled, we will be asking members to submit testimony in support of this measure. Please keep an eye out for updates.

In solidarity,

Merrie and Max

Unit A and Unit B PD Link

Here is the link to access all the Unit A and Unit B Professional Development procedures and documents for the 2021-2022 school year. Applications will be done electronically and all correspondence relating to applications and tuition reimbursements will be done through email. The PD Application Form and documents can be accessed by following the link above and clicking on the menu button and selecting the Professional Development link. It will take you to the PD Homepage with the information. (A big thank you to Erika Masciadrelli for working with us to get this ready! It looks awesome!) Unit A and Unit B Members may begin putting in PD applications and tuition reimbursement requests for the next school year using this information – but approval will be subject to the approval of the final FY22 Budget.

Ethnic and Minority Affairs Materials

Here are some of the new material that the Ethnic and Minority Affairs are discussing:

How to be an antiracist by Ibram Kendi book club: We are currently reading chapter 10-12 and discussing it on Wednesday. If you are interested, let Timothy Thomas know.

Webinar: Bridging the Opportunity Gap: What Culturally Relevant Educators Do (via edweb) http://www.anymeeting.com/PIID=E053DB83854731 Monday, May 10, 2021 @ 3:00 pm – 4:00 pm EDT (event is live but will also be recorded)

We have been discussing book highlights of Culturally Responsive Teaching & The Brain by Zaretta Hammond New Book Read: Pedagogy of the Oppressed Book by Paulo Freire (Paolo Freire’s Pedagogy of the Oppressed believes that education must be remade to inspire and enable the oppressed in their struggle for equality. This new style of education focuses on consciousness-raising, dialogue, and collaboration between teacher and student.)

CRT Highlights

CRT and the Brain Study Guide

Filed Under: MTA