HAVERHILL, MASS. (WHDH) - School has been canceled for Haverhill students for the fourth day amid the teacher strike as the two sides come closer to an agreement.
In a Facebook post to families Wednesday night, Haverhill Public Schools announced they have canceled school for students on Thursday.
Negotiations on salary were nearing a tentative agreement, Tim Briggs, president of the union, announced Wednesday night around 8:50 p.m. But negotiations over other issues quickly broke down the conversation, as “a lot of our proposals, our language, didn’t come through.”
“We don’t have any agreement on language to keep students safe,” Briggs said.
In a post written before Briggs’ announcement, school officials had said they did not believe negotiations will continue tomorrow, instead they were “hopeful to finalize negotiations tonight.”
The post said school was canceled out of consideration for families “who need to make alternative plans,” and that all the childcare and food services will continue to be available for families tomorrow.
This past week, teachers had voted to strike if they could not reach an agreement before 5 p.m. Monday. When it was clear negotiations would continue past then, Superintendent Margaret Marotta announced school was canceled for students, and teachers were expected to report for a professional development day.
As 7NEWS previously reported, an Essex County Superior Court judge issued a temporary restraining order, based on motions filed by the State Department of Labor Relations and the Haverhill School Committee, according to the school officials.
Because it is illegal for public sector teachers to strike in Massachusetts, attorneys for the Haverhill School Committee and the Commonwealth Employment Relations Board asked the court to step in. The order required teachers to return to work, or be penalized with a fine. The fine would increase $10,000 for each day they did not report for work.
“They are not permitted to be on strike,” Judge James F. Lang had said in court. “The strike is over and they must return to work. And if that doesn’t happen (Wednesday), I fully expect that we will have a proceeding tomorrow on a new complaint for contempt.”
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