ESP Contract Highlights
After years of fighting for respect and a living wage, locals are winning major advances for Education Support Professionals. Recent contracts have included 20, 30 and even 40 percent increases in pay. Here are some highlights from recent contracts.
[Updated in Fall 2024]
Andover Education Association: After several days on strike, the Andover Instructional Assistants Unit B settled historic wage increases and gained several benefits such as additional sick days, better family sick leave language, one additional personal day, and 12 weeks of parental leave. By the end of the contract, newly hired Andover IAs will earn $30.39 per hour ($39,139 annually), while top-step members will earn $38.90 per hour ($50,105). These wage increases were gained by achieving a reduction of steps from 17 to nine, along with increases of 5 percent for each year of the four-year contract. November 2023
Bedford Education Association: Bedford Education Support Professionals won significant benefits in their fight for a fair contract. New starting salary from $20,636 to $35,000 for 2025 with a top step from $32,180 to $43,000. With COLA increases and market adjustment, Bedford ESPs will earn $38,594 for first step to 47,439 top step. In addition, for members who were employed during 2020-2021(COVID) year will see a one-time bonus equal to 5.5 percent of annual salary. Other benefits include 10 days of paid parental leave, permanent status after 3 years, tuition reimbursement, orientation, training, and paid mentor support to help with safety and employment retention. June 2024
Bourne Educational Support Personnel: Historic increases in wages for this unit of the Bourne Educators Association, with the starting hourly wage now $21, or about $25,000 annually in the first year. The top step will increase to about $31 an hour, or $36,000 annually, by the contract’s end. All steps on the schedule will be increased between 19 percent and 24 percent. In addition, the contract expands guaranteed use of bereavement leave, increases pay for substitutes and adds fair substitution language. December 2022
Braintree Paraeducators: Contract highlights include wage increases in the first year of 6 percent, Year 2 of 8.5 percent and Year 3 of 8.5 percent. COLA increases of 1.5 percent, 2.5 percent and 5 percent, respectively for a total of 23 percent over the life of the contract. Other benefits for the unit of the Braintree Education Association include more inclusive bereavement language, four weeks of employer-paid parental leave including adoption and up to $60-a-day in substitute pay. May 2023
Bridgewater-Raynham ESPs: The salary schedule was compressed from 15 steps to seven in the first year. With these wage scale adjustments, members’ hourly rate went from a range of $15.68-$28.53 to $21.18-$29.53 in the first year, and they will earn between $22.04 and $32.53 an hour by the end of the contract. In addition, members updated the language for Maternity/Parental/Adoptive Leave to the more inclusive Parental Leave, which is now consistent with Unit A’s Parental Leave language. The union also won increases in longevity benefits of $500 for individuals who have 20 or more years of consecutive service. March 2024
Brockton Support Professionals: Successfully merged two ESP locals into the Brockton Education Support Professional Association, a preK-12 standalone ESP local. New hourly base increase of $2, $2 and $2.25 for each consecutive year. This means that some ESP members will earn up to $40,000 by the contract’s end. This represents a 40 percent increase in pay. Some members will see up to a 49 percent increase, approximately $11,000, by the contract’s end. October 2022
Brookline: The Brookline Educators Union won a strong contract for its ESP unit. Highlights include the addition of many benefits that are equal to BEU teachers, including shortened probationary periods, involuntary transfer protections and access to the Sick Leave Bank on Day 1. In addition, paraprofessionals have access to sub pay before it goes to an outside sub, and most importantly, a wage floor of nearly $40,000 that significantly moves the needle toward a living wage. June 2023
Dedham Educational Interventionists and Paraprofessionals: The educational interventionists, a unit of the Dedham Education Association, settled a two-year contract with a total COLA increase of 12 percent, and an increase in each longevity category in in both years by $100. The paraprofessionals settled a similar contract that includes a 17 percent wage increase and a $100 increase for each longevity category over two years. In addition, building substitutes will receive a 2.5 percent increase in Year 1 and a 3.5 percent increase in Year 2. June 2023
LABBB Collaborative Unit B: A one-year contact include wages between $30,512 and $39,937, just cause language after completing 90 calendar days of service, union rights, duty-free lunch, $30 an hour for compensatory time (work beyond regular work day), $100 stipend for overnight student trips, increase in tuition reimbursement funds from $10,000 to $20,000, allowing members to be reimbursed up to $2,335 a year, up to $500 reimbursement for professional development, mileage reimbursement, increased substitute pay by $15 an hour, the formation of a Labor Management Committee, ability to cash-in accumulated sick time at a rate of 25 percent of per diem rate after 10 years of service, and much more. September 2022
Greater Lowell Paraeducator Organization: Contract settlement include reducing salary schedule steps from 10 to 5 steps 10 step. New salary FY 26-27 school year for a paraeducator with an Associate's degree will be able to start at $37,836 and reach a $50,000 salary in five years of employment. Guaranteed 15-minute break time daily. Parental leave matching that of the teachers in which members can use sick time to take up to 12 weeks. Tuition reimbursement increased from $2,000 for the unit and a maximum of $500 per member to $10,000 and $750 per member. Increased class coverage hourly differential. Unit members providing translation services will be paid a differential of $15/hr. and so much more. April 2024
Hampshire Regional: Hampshire ESPs settled one- and three-year agreements including a 2.5 percent retroactive COLA in year one, followed by 3 percent for FY25, 4 percent for FY26, and 4 percent for FY27. The ESPs also gained increased pay for class coverage from $18 to $22.50 and a combined Sick Leave Bank, creating one large bank from which ESPs can draw, as needed. They also got 20 paid days of parental leave, an additional 20 sick days, and more. This was truly unified bargaining, with the union never giving an inch on settling a fair contract for ESPs, and determined to obtain parental leave. April 2024
Hingham Unit B Paraeducators: After a long contract campaign, Unit B members have made substantial progress toward earning a living wage. Contract wins include a wage increase of between 50-60 percent, moving the hourly rate from $26.52 to $30.24/hour. Additional gains included a $400 increase in longevity pay, two hours pay for subbing, and two $80 retention bonuses. Other benefits include 12 weeks of paid parental leave that has eight weeks paid by the district, unlimited sick time to care for family members who are ill, more leave time including 15 sick days, three personal days, and three religious days, paid para-specific PD, tuition reimbursement and health and safety improvements. June 2024
Hingham Unit D Administrative Assistants: Administrative assistants won a 12 percent COLA increase over three years. In addition, 10 steps were compressed into four steps and six job categories were combined into three categories, which means additional pay for Unit D members. Pay by the end of the contract will increase to an hourly range of $27.39-$42.18 ($35,000 - $76,800 annually.) Other benefits include $300-$635 in longevity increases, set paid hours including paid lunch, extra pay for coverage, sick leave buyback at $20/day, retirement bonus doubled to $2,000 to $5,000, a $600 tuition reimbursement, 12 weeks of paid parental leave that include eight weeks paid by the district, unrestricted sick time to care for family members who are ill, more leave time which includes 12-15 sick days, three religious days, two-to-five bereavement days and a remote work option. June 2024
Hull Paraprofessionals: Over the life of the contract, members will see a pay increase of between $3,189 to $3,745. Wage steps will be compressed from seven to six, with $750 added to the base and a 3 percent COLA for year one, $500 and a 3 percent COLA for year two, and $500 and a 3 percent COLA for year three. Other benefits include an increase in the daily sub base rate from $70 to $90, an increase in number of paid sick days from 12 to 15 (to equal what teachers get), access to sick leave bank for part-time employees, paid collaboration time, a 50 percent increase in the longevity pay, starting in year five instead of year six, one additional paid workday to be used for PD for a total of 183 paid days, improvement to grievance procedures and new articles defining association rights and just cause. May 2024
Lexington Secretaries and Clerks: The contract restructured the wage scale by adding a top step in year one and reducing the bottom steps by one step in year one, and two steps in the last year of the contract. Members won an increase of between 1.75 percent and 2 percent on base, and an additional 3 percent for each year of the three-year contract. Member wages will increase from the current range of $23.85-$32.40 an hour, to $32.40-$40.47 an hour by the end of the contract. Other benefits include: the ability to work remotely when school is not in session, but offices are open; matching Unit A’s sick leave language for full-time employees; and an additional $100 in longevity pay for each year of the contract. June 2024
Malden Education Support Professionals: The new contract has a $30,000 base with yearly additions of 2.5 percent and 2.5 percent. Other financial benefits include an increase in longevity pay of $250 on all levels and up to $600 in-service credits. Other benefits include extended leaves of absence, up to six work weeks of paid parental leave and an additional paid work week using accumulated sick leave, temporary leaves of absence of up to five paid days, an account of $30,000 for tuition reimbursement, allocating up to $500 per member, health and safety language and an individual Chromebook/laptop. October 2022
Manchester Essex Teachers Assistants Union: Teacher assistants ratified their first contract, and a three-year successor agreement. May 2024
Martha’s Vineyard: The contract restructured the wage scale by reducing the number of steps from nine to five in the first year, then adding three new steps for Years 2 and 3; 8.5 percent COLA over three years; additional $5 differential. Members will see increases of $6,705 to $25,659 and will earn as much as $51,000. October 2022
Melrose Paraprofessionals: The contract includes stronger parental leave language, increases in longevity pay and changes in steps which lead to substantial wage increases. By the end of the contract, ESPs in the Melrose Education Association will earn $29,000 or more, and therapist assistants will earn $35,000 or more. December 2022
Middleton: The Middleton Educators Association organized a new unit for Middleton paraprofessionals in 2023. For their first contract, ESPs were able to ratify a two-year deal with raise increases ranging from 25 percent to 35 percent, get just cause protections, substitute pay, $750 premium pay, a significant increase in sick and personal time and several stipends. January 2023
Monomoy Unit B Secretaries, Administrative Assistants, and Paraeducators: In the first year of the contract, assistants and administrative assistants will get a 3 percent base-wage increase and steps one and two will be eliminated. Cafeteria workers have a new schedule with revised wage rates that eliminate steps one through three. In subsequent years, the COLA for all Unit B members will increase by 3.25 percent, and another 3.25 percent in years two and three of the contract. Other benefits include increased sick leave buyback, increased substitute pay and course reimbursement ranging from $6,000 to $12,000. May 2024
Monomoy Unit C Cafeteria Workers: In the first year of the contract, Unit C members will have wage increases that include a revised salary schedule that eliminates steps one through seven and re-numbers steps eight through 16 as steps one through nine. Members will receive a 3.25 percent boost in the second year, followed by a 3.25 percent increase in year three. Other benefits include: a $100 increase in longevity pay, a $75 increase in the clothing allowance to $300, additional days for FMLA, and better language for bereavement leave. May 2024
Newburyport Instructional Assistants: Wage increases for specialists of up to 14 percent depending on their step. Wage increases of up to 13 percent for generalists for the life of the contract. Newburyport ESPs will now earn up to $37,500 by 2025. July 2022
Newton: After a two-week strike, the Newton Teaching Aides (Unit C) and the Educational Support Staff (Unit E) ratified a four-year contract. The contract includes increased COLA of 2.5 percent in year one, 2.5 percent and additional $250 annualized salary in year two, 3 percent and an additional $500 in year three. In the last year of the contract, members will receive a 3.25 percent increase and $500 followed by an additional 0.75 percent on March 1. By 2026, all newly employed members will start at step three. Members also bargained several benefits, such as 20 days of paid parental leave with the opportunity to use 40 accrued sick days. Members also will get two additional sick leave days for 14 days per school year, and an increase in tuition reimbursement from $750 to $1,000 for members seeking licensure for each contract year. April 2024
North-Andover Teaching Assistants: After several months of bargaining, the Teaching Assistants ratified a contract that includes the compression of the salary schedule, from 20 steps to 12 and year one salary increases (when accounting for the paid holidays) that range from the starting salary rising from $19.10 to $21.25 (when including paid holidays, roughly an 18 percent increase) to a maximum salary increasing from $31.03 to $36.35 (when including paid holidays, roughly a 23 percent increase). In years 2 and 3, members will get a salary increase of 2.5 percent annually. Other benefits include paid parental leave for birth and non-birth parents that can include four weeks fully paid, and an additional eight weeks (for a total of 12 weeks) that can come out of sick leave. Members also will get 12 paid holidays for the first time, which is applicable for ESPs on steps 4 and higher in the first year of the contract, and for all ESPs starting in year two. In addition, the contract also creates a mentoring program. May 2023
Reads Collaborative: The specialized educational assistants will go from a starting salary of $23,827 for the 2022-2023 school year to $30,195 in 2023-2024 and get a 3 percent increase in year two and again in year three. Interpreters working in the deaf and hard-of-hearing program will have starting rates increase from $42,904 in 2022-2023 to $50,003 in 2023-2024 and will also get 3 percent increases in years two and year three. The SLPAs will go from $41,199 in 2022-2023 to the same starting rate for interpreters, and also get the 3 percent boost in years two and three. May 2023
Pentucket Paraeducators: The Pentucket paraeducators won salary increases of over 17 percent with a wage reopener allowing to negotiate for increased wages within this contract cycle. Starting salary increases to $24,037 and maximum salary increases to $29,211. Increase substitute pay, longevity and degree incentive. Other benefits include J-just cCause rights after three years, expanded sick leave, sick bank, bereavement and voluntary and involuntary language. August 2022
Saugus Clerks: Contract highlights include wage increases through a market adjustment of $1,250 on base, plus 2 percent; $1,100 market adjustment plus 2 percent; and $1,100 market adjustment plus 3 percent over the life of the contract. Seeking better wages for all members, the Saugus School Clerical Association merged the lowest-paid members (junior clerks) into the highest wage schedule (senior clerks). This increased wages for some members by $7,300, representing between 16 percent and 19 percent increases. The contract also established $3,000 a year for professional development and formed a Professional Development Joint Committee, while adding stronger grievance language, mileage reimbursement, additional vacation days and holidays. January 2023
Saugus Instructional Assistants: Wage increases include 20 percent, 10 percent and a 5 percent COLA. Other benefits include parental leave, two additional bereavement days, an additional 50 days accumulated sick days, ability to roll over two personal days into the following school year, adoption leave language, stronger grievance language, bereavement language that includes miscarriage, upon retirement the ability to donate 25 sick days to sick bank, ability to accumulate an additional 10 days of sick time, association leave, a 403(b) plan, up to $500 per year in sick leave incentive and an additional $15 a day for subbing. May 2023
Stoneham Clerical: Highest wage increase: $500 added to base plus 4 percent; $500 to the base plus 4 percent increase; $500 on base plus 4 percent increase. Stoneham clerical members, a unit of the Stoneham Education Association, will earn as much as $45,000 by the end of the contract. December 2022
Wakefield Instructional Support Personnel: Historic yearly increases of 15.5 percent, 2 percent and 2.25 percent, with an increase of two more days of professional development. Wakefield paraprofessionals will earn up to $34,000 by the contract’s end. June 2022
Wellesley Support Professionals: Strong organizing led to transformative wage increases for ESPs including COLA increases of 15 percent over three years, longevity increases of 15 percent and retention payments of up to $4,000 for Year 1 and $3,000 and $1,000 in subsequent years. Other benefits for the unit of the Wellesley Educators Association include leave bank, three additional paid holidays, up to two additional personal days, defined sick bank language, and more. May 2023
Weymouth Educators’ Association: After months of negotiations and organizing efforts, Weymouth Unit D reached an agreement that will give members a retroactive wage increase of 29 percent, an additional two steps, at 4 percent for each step, for veteran ESPs, and 3.5 percent and 3 percent hikes in years two and year, respectively. In total, members will receive a wage increase of 35.5 percent. By the end of the contract, new members will enter the Weymouth workforce earning $34,604 and top-step ESPs will earn as much as $71,264. In addition, 37 non-unit members were added to the unit. April 2024
Wilmington Instructional Assistants: The ESP unit of the Wilmington Teachers Association settled the best contract in its history. The contract has wage increases between $5,420 to $9,100 over three years, representing as much as a 29.44 percent increase. By the end of the contract, Wilmington IAs will have wages between $22,232 and $34,680, as compared to $16,826 to $28,990 in FY 2022. Other benefits include substitute pay increases, an assigned school district device, a $500 increase in longevity pay, common planning time for general education tutors, seven family sick days and three additional holidays. May 2022
Worcester Paraeducators: After more than 17 months of negotiations, the Worcester paraeducators, a unit of the Educational Association of Worcester, won a historic contract, ranking among the best financial settlements in decades in Massachusetts. For 2022-2023, the contract includes a $1,600, one-time payment and a 3 percent retroactive payment; differential pay that reflects education up to $2,500 over base; elimination of pay scale steps 1-4; summer pay of $30 an hour and an increase in meeting pay by $95. For FY 2023-2024, the contract has an increase of 3 percent on base and a complete revision of the scale. The former top step (9) becomes the new step 1, with 6 steps total and 2.5 percent increases between each step. Annual salaries will range between $33,094 and $39,943. In addition, the contract provides $1,000 stipends for specialized work. In fiscal years 2024-2025 and 2025-2026, the contract has COLAs of 3 percent and 3.5 percent, respectively. During FY 2025-2026, paraeducators’ salaries will range between $35,280 and $42,416. Other benefits include sick leave bank, bereavement leave, maternity/parental leave language clarification, joint committee, and more. May 2023
Worcester Transportation: Another historic win with 5 to 17 percent increases. Ten-month drivers will earn $30 an hour. Steps were eliminated. Bonuses of $500 to $1,000. June 2022