The school district in which I work is in continued negotiations with our teachers’ union for a new contract. This was supposed to be resolved before the end of last school year, but an agreement has not been reached, so we (the teachers) have started the 2024/25 school year without a contract. It’s an uncomfortable situation and leaves many teachers in our district feeling undervalued and unappreciated.
The union suggested we get red shirts printed up that say “stronger together” to show solidarity amongst the teachers as we continue to try to negotiate a fair contract. Previous attempts to resolve this with the district have failed to produce an acceptable result so far, so it is time for next steps, one being to make this issue more visible to the community. We will be wearing our “stronger together” shirts during parent/teacher conferences coming up this week.
In all my 27 years as a teacher, I’ve never experienced working with an expired contract before. Negotiations always produced new contracts in the past. It is not a good feeling to be at odds with the district, but the message “stronger together” has always been true in my experience as a teacher.
Over the years, I’ve worked with the best people. Teachers who I know put their heart and soul into their work in the classroom every single day of every school year. They work before school, after school, from home, and over the summer vacation. They spend their own money every year to make sure their students have what they need. They are dependable, hard-working, passionate, and tough. If I must be in a difficult situation, I’m glad to be in it with my fellow teacher colleagues.
Teachers have always been there for each other. We train each other, encourage each other, dry each other’s tears, and sometimes laugh until we cry. We have to. We work in one of the most stressful and challenging environments every day, but it’s also one of the most rewarding.
Whatever happens with our upcoming teacher negotiations, I know I am in good company. As we enter the month of November, the month of giving thanks. I am thankful for my teacher colleagues. We are always “stronger together.”
