MASD Teachers OK Strike if No Contract Reached

Union president promises time for district ‘to get its house in order’

By Staff Reports
The Tube City Almanac
October 05, 2023
Posted in: McKeesport and Region News

BREAKING: This is a developing story and is subject to change.

Teachers in the McKeesport Area School District have authorized their union’s leadership to call a strike if a contract settlement cannot be reached “in the near future.”

The announcement was made by union president Gerald McGrew Jr. following a membership meeting Thursday afternoon in Dravosburg. The vote was unanimous, McGrew said.

Members of the McKeesport Area Education Association have been working without a contract since Aug. 31. A tentative settlement on a five-year contract was reached over the summer, but was voted down by the school board, 8-0.

The union represents 266 teachers and classroom professionals in the district.

The rejected deal between the district and the teachers’ union would have run through Aug. 31, 2028, and included raises ranging from 6 to 6.59 percent during each of the first three years, with a 4.38 percent raise in the fourth year, and a 3.26 raise in the final year.

While rejecting the contract, school board members said they were unsure if the district could afford the pay raises.

“The reasons for the board’s action remain unclear,” McGrew said in a prepared statement issued Thursday. “What is clear to us is that the board and district administration are in a state of chaos, without any obvious leadership.”

He said the teachers’ demands were reasonable “by any measure” and reiterated his previous statement that the union does not want to go on strike.

“However, in taking this step, the membership of the MAEA has clearly indicated to the board that we will use any and all measures available to us under Pennsylvania law in order to reach a contract settlement that treats all members of our union fairly and equitably,” he said Thursday.

Under state law, a strike authorization gives the union’s negotiating committee the authority to call a work stoppage if necessary. The union is continuing to negotiate with the school board, McGrew said.

Recent school board meetings have been marked by hostility between school directors and members of the public. Several concerned residents have called a town-hall meeting for 5 p.m. Saturday at the White Oak Athletic Association on Lower Heckman Road to discuss issues that range from school safety to the teacher’s contract to incorrect tax bills that were sent to homeowners and the alleged use of a homophobic slur by a member of the board.

“Since the turmoil began in the district, exacerbated by the recent sudden departure of the district business manager, our union will provide the district with some time to get its house in order, so that it can begin to negotiate with us again,” McGrew said Thursday. “However, that time is finite. We will do what it takes to ensure that our members are heard and respected.”

McGrew said the school board’s decision not to approve the previously agreed-upon contract was a “flip-flop” that was disrespectful to the rank-and-file.

“Our members deserve to be treated with respect,” he said. “They work extremely hard to provide the kids in the McKeesport schools a great education and a nurturing, safe environment. Especially during these past years of pandemic challenges, our members have gone above and beyond in their efforts to teach our kids. They deserve to be rewarded for these efforts.

“We strongly urge the board to get (its) house in order and take the steps necessary to finish these negotiations and agree to a contract,” McGrew said.

Originally published October 05, 2023.

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