Teachers on the North Shore put down their lesson plans and picked up picket signs.
Last November, teachers in Marblehead, Gloucester and Beverly all went on strike, fighting for better pay, benefits and improved working conditions.
Now, 7 Investigates has uncovered the hidden costs of those strikes.
7 Investigates found that the three school districts combined spent a staggering $732,000 in taxpayer money on legal fees, police details, and public relations firms during the strikes.
$449,000 was spent in Beverly alone.
“It was two weeks. It was just so long and I don’t think it was worth it,” said Melanie Knudson, a Beverly parent.
The biggest line item, the deployment of police at rallies and negotiations.
“If we’re trusted to work with students in school, we don’t need to be monitored by police during investigations,” said Andrea Sherman, Beverly Teachers Union President.
In Gloucester, where negotiations got heated, the school committee says security was “essential.”
Gloucester doled out more than $63,000 for police details.
In total, the city paid over $213,000 while teachers were on strike.
“The cost of the strike could’ve totally supported the paraprofessional wage increase that they were asking for over a few times,” said Rachel Rex, President of the Gloucester Teacher’s Association.
Taxpayers will pay for some of the city’s strike expenditures, but the Gloucester Teacher’s Association is responsible for paying back most of the costs. The money will come from union dues and fundraising.
In Marblehead, the strike cost local taxpayers nearly $70,000. Over half of that went to legal fees.
“This was an illegal work stoppage, so there were legal actions that needed to be taken because of that,” said Jennifer Schaeffner, Chair of the Marblehead school committee.
“A cost that would’ve never existed outside of the strike were the court filings, and for the additional attorney to be in the courthouses doing that work. And also behind the scenes,” said Sarah Fox of the Marblehead school committee.
Also behind the scenes, each community hired public relations firms to deal with questions from families and reporters.
In total, those bills were more than $258,000.
“We had tremendous, a tremendous influx of requests on a daily basis from media, all forms of media. Print, radio, TV,” said Schaeffner.
“The PR firm was certainly not necessary,” said Rex.
“I don’t think people need a PR firm if they are doing the right thing,” said Sherman. “It’s not something that needs spin if you’re being fair.”
The costs won’t end there. Some communities are already discussing raising property taxes to pay the teachers higher wages they got as a result of the strikes.
“I agree they deserve to be paid a little more and be treated better, but, I just feel like we’re definitely gonna pay for it in the end. And the kids are paying for it too,” said Knudson.
Parents, teachers, and school committee members say the heated negotiations have fractured their communities. They’re hoping the division heals over time.
(Copyright (c) 2024 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)