Educators in St. Paul, Minneapolis vote to strike over student-centered demands

February 18, 2022 by

Members of the St. Paul and Minneapolis educators’ unions cross the Ford Parkway bridge during a march last weekend.

Staff in the St. Paul Public Schools are on the brink of a strike again after members of the St. Paul Federation of Educators voted yesterday to authorize the union’s elected leaders to call a work stoppage.

Union members who voted “yes” said they were hopeful the vote would be a catalyst for movement in negotiations with the district, which began last May and have since entered mediation.

According to members of the SPFE bargaining team, the district has shown little interest in the union’s student-centered contract proposals, which include lowering class sizes, fully staffing mental health services, support for students with special needs and measures to attract and retain educators during the pandemic.

“I want our district to stop saying that they value their educators and actually do it,” said René Myers, an intervention specialist at Hazel Park Preparatory Academy who voted “yes” to authorizing a strike. “I want our district to value our knowledge and expertise, and actually support us in our efforts instead of dismissing us and saying they know better.”

About two-thirds of SPFE’s 3,680 members participated in the vote, with 78% voting in favor of strike authorization.

Educators across the river voted to authorize a strike this week, too. Members of the Minneapolis Federation of Teachers and Education Support Professionals announced their strike vote results yesterday, and said they are seeking living wages for ESPs and improved learning and working conditions in the district.

School districts and their unions negotiate every two years, and strike votes have become more common in recent years, since the state eliminated a penalty for districts that fail to finalize employee agreements by a certain deadline, SPFE member Peter Grebner said.

“The district has no incentive to take us seriously until our members show they are willing to support their bargaining team and help fight for our demands,” he said. “Although strike votes are stressful, they now appear to be necessary if we are to continue to win some of our proposals and prevent them from removing things we have won previously.”

But Grebner, a longtime member of the union’s bargaining team, said the district’s stance is more hardline this year than he has ever seen.

Not only are SPPS negotiators effectively stonewalling most of SPFE’s 23 proposals, the district is seeking to claw back hard-won language in the educators’ contracts around mental health supports, class sizes and even guaranteed recess for elementary students.

“Trying to take advantage of the pandemic to take away these things is not only harmful, but disrespectful to families and employees,” Grebner said.

While SPFE negotiators are hoping for progress when talks with the district resume, the strike vote is no empty threat.

Most of SPFE’s members, who include teachers, educational assistants and professional staff in the district, have experience on the picket line after a weeklong strike in March 2020. At the time, union leaders said the strike would likely have continued were it not for uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic.

Myers, who also serves on the bargaining team, said the district seems to be taking the same approach it did two years ago, marked by a stubborn “unwillingness … to actively participate in the process.”

“I am voting for a strike so that our kids can get what they need: a real, well-rounded education where they see educators that look like them, who can support their mental health as well as their academic needs, who will be there for them every step of the way because they are provided with the tools they need,” Myers added.

SPFE must deliver 10 days’ notice to the district before the union can legally go on strike. Union leaders indicated they plan to deliver that notice next week.

“No one wants to strike, but district leaders haven’t budged and even want to backtrack on the investments our students need,” SPFE President Leah VanDassor said. “The last two years have been hard on everyone. It has also shown us students need even more support, not less.

“The short-term sacrifice of a strike is worth it so our students have the schools they deserve for years to come.”

Educators urged community members to call on administrators to quit stalling and begin taking the negotiations seriously, and to sign the petition in support of their student-centered contract demands.

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St. Paul educators balk at district’s demand for concessions

December 16, 2021 by

Educators line the sidewalk outside St. Anthony Park Elementary during a walk-in event highlighting their union’s student-centered contract priorities.

Less than two years after their historic strike drew thousands of supporters into the streets, St. Paul educators are back at the bargaining table, looking to defend and build on gains made in their last contract.

This morning educators were back outside their school buildings, too, showing unity and support for the student-centered priorities guiding their union in talks with the district.

“The students should always come first – always,” second-grade teacher Ruth Krider said before a “walk-in” event at St. Anthony Park Elementary.

That means keeping class sizes small, staffing mental health teams at every school, hiring and retaining more bilingual educators and educators of color, and providing more support and resources to special education teachers.

The St. Paul Federation of Educators calls it building the “schools St. Paul students deserve,” and educators have fought hard in recent rounds of bargaining to write benchmarks for student services into their union contract. An agreement to expand students’ access to mental-health supports was key to settling the strike in March 2020.

But union members say the district set out this year to take back many of those gains, including limits on class sizes and the hard-fought language around mental health. One proposal to eliminate a guarantee that students have access to recess time sparked a new chant outside St. Anthony Park this morning: “What do we want? Recess! When do we want it? Now!”

The district is demanding concessions from educators despite receiving over $200 million in American Rescue Plan funds.

Krider called it “disheartening” to see that kind of posturing from the district, particularly during a school year that many educators have described as their most difficult. In St. Paul, looming school closures have only added to the stress of teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It feels like things are coming at us from all sides,” Krider said. “With negotiations on top of all that, it would be nice to feel like we could be trusted by the district, but staff are not being listened to.

“We feel like we’re moving backwards, almost. We fought hard, we had some gains, and now we’re feeling like we have to redo the whole thing.”

But SPFE members aren’t shying away from another fight with the district.

Yesterday, a delegation of educators presented Superintendent Joe Gothard with a petition signed by 75% of members supporting the union’s contract proposals. And today’s “walk-in” events, in which educators enter school alongside the students at the center of their bargaining priorities, took place across the city.

Supporters can sign onto the petition backing educators’ bargaining proposals, and sign up for updates from the union about future public actions.

SPFE and district leaders met Tuesday in their first mediation session since the district petitioned to move talks behind closed doors.

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Nick Faber: Strike, contract campaign led to real gains for St. Paul schools

April 1, 2020 by

SPFE President Nick Faber (R) spoke at a union rally outside district headquarters.

– Nick Faber is president of the St. Paul Federation of Educators. He wrote this column for the April 2020 edition of The St. Paul Union Advocate newspaper.

No one should doubt St. Paul educators’ unwavering commitment to our students. We care so much about what our children need, we were willing to strike for them.  

And the short-term sacrifices we made during the three-day strike were worth the long-term gains made for our students and families and the collective power we built as educators.  

Our strike was about getting our students the resources they deserve and breaking down racial disparities in our schools, so all students, no matter what they look like or where they are from, can thrive and succeed.   

The contract ratified March 20 by members of the St. Paul Federation of Educators puts the St. Paul Public Schools on the path to building the schools our students deserve. 

The new contract guarantees the district will spend an additional $5 million to hire more counselors, social workers, intervention specialists, nurses, psychologists and bilingual educational assistants next school year to give students the mental health and multilingual support they need. 

Educators understand how important these supports are to the health and well-being of our students and families. In the 2019 Minnesota Student Survey, 19 percent of eighth-grade girls in St. Paul Public Schools said they seriously considered suicide in the last year. And 40 percent of fifth-graders agreed with the statement, “I worry a lot.” We need more staff to tend to these increasing mental-health needs. 

Hiring more staff who speak different languages also is critical so all families feel welcome and supported at their school. Families in St. Paul schools speak 129 different languages, but many don’t have access to multilingual staff to help them feel welcome and fully participate in their school community. SPPS only has 13 full-time Spanish interpreter positions working in 63 schools and nine Somali interpreters in 45 schools that need them.  

This isn’t just important for our families, but our multilingual staff as well. Many are people of color, some immigrants themselves, who are being pulled away from their primary duties working with students to interpret because there just isn’t enough staff. 

Educators also won on another important issue – expanding restorative practices across the district to end the school-to-prison pipeline. Restorative practices are one way to build community and a positive school climate without pushing students of color out of school.  

We knew the community had our backs in the days leading up to the strike. St. Paul has long valued public education – our schools are always at the heart of our community. But once we went on strike, the support was truly overwhelming. Students came out in droves – some even whipped up pancakes from the back of minivans. Parents brought their babies, future SPPS students, sporting SPFEonesies and buttons to rallies. St. Paul businesses fed educators on the picket lines. I could go on and on. 

The strike empowered St. Paul educators. But we’re not done yet. We’re not done advocating for our students – this is just the beginning.  

Educators across the nation are frustrated. Policymakers need to start listening to the experts – educators and parents – when decisions are made about our public schools.  

Closing our state’s racial and economic disparities requires real investments – a multi-billion-dollar increase in state funding for public schools – so we can provide every student with the resources they need. No exceptions. 

And St. Paul educators will demand to be heard at the local level. Budgets reflect priorities. We are with our students every day and know we need to focus first on hiring more adults who work directly with our children.  

Elected officials at all levels should be on notice. Educators are willing to take mass action to get the schools our students deserve. 

 

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Strike ends, but educators vow to fight on for public schools

March 13, 2020 by

Striking SPFE members lead a march through downtown St. Paul Wednesday.

St. Paul educators set out last May to bargain a contract in the public good.

When they went on strike this week, the public was right there standing with them.

On the picket line and social media, at union rallies and in the streets, public support poured in for the 3,600 members of the St. Paul Federation of Educators, who went on strike Tuesday morning to demand the district take action on their student-centered contract proposals.

The strike ended today, after negotiators for SPFE and the district reached an early-morning tentative agreement on new two-year contracts that will begin to address union members’ concerns.

The agreement would commit the district to hiring more staff to support students’ mental health needs and assist multilingual families. It would expand the district’s restorative approach to discipline, create more manageable workloads for special-ed teachers and raise SPFE members’ wages.

Nick Faber, the union’s president, refused to discuss how much money the district committed to the new agreement until it had been shared with members. But Faber did say educators would have pushed for more were it not for the coronavirus pandemic — and the district’s willingness to use potential school closures as leverage to force a settlement.

“Our teachers were ready to stay out … to get all of the supports our students need,” Faber said. “Had it not been for the coronavirus, we would have been able to do better.”

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Schools will reopen Monday, but union members reported to their buildings for work this afternoon, bringing an end to a historic week of activism and solidarity in the capital city, which saw its first teacher strike in 74 years.

Each morning from Tuesday to Thursday, SPFE members put up picket lines outside their school buildings, drawing a steady chorus of honks from passing vehicles. Each day after picket lines came down, educators came together for an afternoon rally and march through the streets.

Their ranks swelled with parents, students, elected officials, labor leaders and other community members inspired by SPFE’s campaign “for the schools St. Paul students deserve.” Together, they turned parts of the city into a sea of red, marking the latest stop in the nationwide #RedForEd fight to fund public education.

Kera Peterson, president of the St. Paul Regional Labor Federation, speaks at a rally in Rice Park.

It’s what happens, St. Paul Regional Labor Federation President Kera Peterson said, when you bargain for the common good.

“We know what you guys are fighting for, and we’re with you every step of the way,” Peterson, whose organization represents 100-plus local unions with over 50,000 members, told educators during a massive rally in Rice Park Wednesday.

With school cancelled, students flocked to union events as an opportunity, Harding junior Paris Smoot said, “to show student voices are also very powerful.” Her classmate Ashanti Williams said it’s inspiring to see students and educators joining together “to make a change and create a better environment for people.”

Many students carried signs supporting the union’s efforts to funnel more resources into mental-health supports for themselves and their schoolmates. Smoot, who attended the rally Wednesday, said she experienced depression and suicidal thoughts last school year.

“I didn’t even know Harding had a therapist,” Smoot said.

Harding juniors Ashanti Williams (L) and Paris Smoot join their teachers at a strike rally.

Faber acknowledged the new contract, if ratified by members, won’t fix every problem they set out to address. But educators are going back to work “ready to keep fighting for their students,” he said.

“That energy, we’ve heard from our members already this morning, they’re not putting it away,” Faber added. “It’s not going back in their pockets.”

More, union leaders hope the strike — and the public support union members received — delivered a message to board members and administrators that they won’t get away with ignoring educators’ concerns.

“People were out in the rain for this,” bargaining team member and science teacher Todd Marder said. “The power of that was just heartwarming and touching. Thank you.”

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SPPS educators strike for schools their students deserve

March 10, 2020 by

The nationwide wave of #RedForEd strikes made a big splash today in St. Paul.

The St. Paul Federation of Educators called the city’s first teacher strike in 74 years after negotiations with the St. Paul Public Schools on union contracts covering 3,800 teachers, education assistants and other professional staff broke down overnight.

This morning, union members picketed outside 50-plus school buildings. By afternoon, they had consolidated outside Global Arts Plus school, where they were joined by parents, students and other community supporters.

Together, they formed a sea of red as they marched into West 7th Street and toward the district’s headquarters, where the presidents of both major U.S. teachers’ unions led a fiery rally calling on district officials to start listening to its educators.

“You give whatever it takes for your students to succeed, but you have a superintendent who tells you what you’re asking is too much,” National Education Association President Lily Eskelsen Garcia told union members. “Has that man ever told you you should hold back from your kids? Absolutely not.”

The teacher-led #RedForEd movement, fighting to reverse decades of disinvestment in public schools and the people who staff them, has sparked strikes across the country in recent years. Last year alone, some 237,400 educators joined strikes in North Carolina, West Virginia, Los Angeles, Chicago, Kentucky and Oregon, according to the Economic Policy Institute.

And now educators are striking in St. Paul, fighting for their student-centered contract demands. The union wants mental-health supports in every SPPS school, more support for multilingual families and special-ed teachers, and additional investments in restorative practices.

“I know all of you would rather be in school with your kids,” American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten said at today’s rally. “But we are in the streets … and we’ve been in the streets for the last two years.

“Teachers, educators want what children need. You wouldn’t be fighting if you didn’t believe that.”

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Teachers will be back in the streets tomorrow, when the district plans to cancel classes for a second consecutive day. After picketing at school sites in the morning, SPFE will hold a rally and march beginning in Rice Park at 1 p.m. The union welcomes all supporters to attend.

“Tomorrow we’re going to be back on the picket line,” SPFE President Nick Faber said. “We’re going to be out there until we get … a contract that gives our students the support they need.”

Additionally, union leaders are asking supporters to email members of the school board and urge them to work with educators to reach a settlement.

 

The union also has put together a list of resources for parents and families impacted by the school closures, and is updating the list regularly.

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