In a decision that could upend any plans to disrupt the opening of school across Massachusetts, the state labor relations board ruled on Tuesday, September 8, 2020, that Andover teachers engaged in an unlawful strike when they refused to enter school buildings last week for training. The decision affirmed the Andover School Committee's position that [...]
On October 25, 2019, Dedham teachers went on a one-day strike—the first strike in Massachusetts in over a decade—in violation of state law which prohibits public employees from striking. M.G.L. c. 150E § 9(a). (“No public employee or employee organization shall engage in a strike, and no public employee or employee organization shall induce, encourage [...]
The State Ethics Commission (“Commission”) found that a South Hadley school employee violated the conflict of interest law by accepting travel and stipends, a form of compensation, from a tour company while performing her duties as a Trip Advisor. Beginning in 2007 through 2017, the employee organized school trips as the group leader. During this [...]
Whether a dismissed teacher employed by a school district for over five years, but who took two separate maternity leaves during that period, has professional teacher status (PTS) is an issue that must be decided by an arbitrator. Plymouth Public Schools v. Educ. Assoc. of Plymouth & Carver, 89 Mass. App. Ct. 643 (2016). This [...]
A teacher does not have the right to challenge his dismissal under the grievance and arbitration procedure, and just cause standard, in a Teachers collective bargaining agreement (“CBA”). Rather, the appeal is limited to arbitration pursuant to M.G.L. c. 71, section 42, which limits an arbitrator’s ability to overturn a dismissal if the Employer proves [...]
In December, 2014, the Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education adopted proposed amendments to the state’s Physical Restraint Regulations (603 CMR 46.00). A central theme of the amended regulations is that physical restraint should only be used in an emergency and as a last resort, except when a student’s behavior poses a threat of [...]
In Meagher v. Andover School Committee, et al., Civil Action No. 13-11307-JGD (2015), a U.S. District Court judge ruled that the Andover School Department, and the Andover School Committee violated the First Amendment rights of a teacher by terminating her employment in retaliation for protected speech. In 2012, while the union and the school committee [...]
The Board of the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) recently approved amendments to the Department's Physical Restraint Regulations (603 CMR 46.00) and to the Program and Safety Standards for Approved Public or Private Day and Residential Special Education School Programs (603 CMR 18.00). The amended regulations do not take effect until January [...]
In an important victory for Massachusetts school districts and statewide efforts towards increased accountability for educators, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (“SJC”) has issued a decision which limits the scope of authority granted to an arbitrator under the state’s teacher dismissal statute. School Committee of Lexington v. Zagaeski, 2014 WL 3393541 (July 14, 2014). The [...]
A California Superior Court has invalidated the state’s teacher tenure, dismissal and layoff statutes in Vergara v. California (June 10, 2014).