May 10, 2025 – Support Our Schools (SOS) stands with the Northampton Association of School Employees (NASE) in their recently announced work-to-rule action starting on Monday, May 12. This action is in response to the inadequate cost of living raise offered to teachers by the city in recent contract negotiations. We strongly support their demand for fair pay.
NASE leaders announced the job action at the May 8 School Committee meeting. You can view the announcement at this link: 3/8/25 NASE Public Comment.
NASE president Andrea Egitto said:
“The mayor’s allocation to the school budget is insufficient and doesn’t provide for a reasonable cost of living increase for the professional employees of the Northampton public schools. Ultimately what is being offered under the mayor’s budget will result in what is effectively a pay cut due to the rate of inflation and increased cost of healthcare premiums.”
SOS believes that we cannot expect teachers to provide the usual unpaid labor of working from home, coming in early and staying late, volunteering for after school clubs, chaperoning field trips, and using their own money to buy classroom supplies when they are offered a salary increase so low that it is actually a pay cut.
As Andrea Egitto of NASE stated: “As our staff routinely do so much more than they are required to do, or are paid for, this will regretfully result in a greater loss to our schools.”
SOS believes that these important offerings like clubs and trips have been propped up by unpaid, invisible labor for far too long. The city can solve this problem by fully funding the schools and offering the teachers a fair wage in contract negotiations.
If you support Northampton teachers and school staff, we hope you will tell the mayor, the city council, and school committee. You can use the email template below as a start point.
Contact Information
Please write to all three email addresses below so that all elected officials know that constituents want teachers to be paid fairly.
Email Template
Dear Mayor, City Councilors, and School Committee members.
I’m writing to urge you to support fair pay for school staff. The salary increase recently offered to the teachers is so small that it amounts to a cut in pay with inflation and increased cost of insurance premiums.
Our teachers work hard to provide a great education at every building in the district. Yet resources and support staff have been cut, class size is ballooning, and the needs of the students are much greater. We expect them to do so much, and we offer them what will actually be lower pay for next year.
Our students and families need experienced and committed school staff who do not need to worry about getting a second or third job. We cannot expect to retain teachers if we cannot pay them a respectful and appropriate wage. I urge you to find a way to treat our teachers fairly.
Sincerely,
Name & Northampton Ward (or name of your town/city)
For more information
- FY26 Budget Overview
- SOS Responds to Mayor Sciarra’s FY26 Budget Presentation
- Facts need context. Budgets need values.
Recent news coverage (updated May 13, 2025)
- 5/13/25 Daily Hampshire Gazette – Northampton school union, city far apart on new three-year contract
- 5/12/25 WAMC – Northampton Public Schools educators start work-to-rule campaign amid contract talks, budget proposal
- 5/12/25 WWLP22 – Northampton teachers halt work for unpaid labor protest
- 5/10/25 Daily Hampshire Gazette – Northampton union votes for work-to-rule over stalled contract talks