November 11, 2023

Statement of the Andover School Committee

The School Committee and the Andover Education Association (AEA) bargained for eight hours on Friday, November 10, 2023, with the assistance of a state-appointed mediator.

The School Committee enhanced its paid parental leave proposal, which now includes 11 weeks of paid leave for all parents who welcome a child, through a combination of district-funded leave and accrued sick days. The School Committee’s proposal makes this benefit available to both parents if both are district employees.

The School Committee also agreed to an increase in sick time for instructional assistants, bringing the total number of available days to 15.

The parties are scheduled to meet again on Saturday morning. The School Committee remains committed to negotiating in good faith and looks forward to the AEA’s response to its proposal. In the meantime, we once again call on the AEA to end this illegal strike so we can bring our students back to the classroom.