Minneapolis Federation of Educators Local 59 held a rally at the Davis Center on September 9 before the last open bargaining session on September 11. Photo by Amie Stager.
Jane Hornsby, who has taught middle school for three and a half years in the Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS) district, is worried that huge class sizes are compromising learning and basic safety.
“As of writing this, my largest class roster is at 50,” Hornsby said at a union rally on September 9. “The district is betting on a large percentage of these students not showing up, and they haven’t all shown up, right now there’s forty-two eleven year olds, and one adult, that’s me. It’s too many to fit in the room safely.”
On September 11, the Minneapolis Federation of Educators (MFE) Local 59, which represents teachers and education support professionals (ESPs), held their last public bargaining session before heading into mediation with the district. As a member of the union, Hornsby worked on the class size proposal that the union gave to the district in negotiations for their next contract. The union has been bargaining for measures that educators say are directly related to the safety and wellbeing of students and workers, like class sizes and wages that impact the quality of education and keep up with the cost of living.
According to workers, the raises that ESPs won in their last contract after going on strike in 2022 haven’t translated to liveable wages because ESPs aren’t being scheduled enough hours. Kim Ambers has been a special education assistant for MPS for over 30 years. “After that amazing win for ESPs, we were all excited to finally make what we thought would be closer to a liveable wage, only to find out that our hours had been decreased,” Ambers said at the rally. “Without the hours to go with it, it’s not making a difference.”
The union first proposed an increase for ESP wages by 12% in school year 25-26 and 10% in school year 26-27, as well as an increase in teacher salary by 7% in the first year, and by 6% in the second year. They also proposed bringing adult education teachers onto the same salary schedule. The district declined these proposals, and offered a counterproposal of a 1% increase in the first year, and a 1% increase in the second year.
In August, the Minneapolis School Board approved a new compensation plan for non-union represented employees in senior officer positions. According to this plan, senior administrators can see an increase of up to $33,397 in the minimum salary offered when compared to the previous plan. The school board shared in an email with Workday Magazine the specific raises that some administrators are receiving, and the highest is a 19.57% raise of $27,955. According to the union, that raise exceeds what some union members make in an entire year.
Additionally, educators and parents have concerns about special education. Laura Carpenter is a parent of a middle school child with autism and dyslexia and is concerned about her child’s individualized education program (IEP). An IEP is a legal document and process outlining how teachers, parents, administrators, and staff can work together to improve education for students with disabilities. These documents are mandated by a federal law through the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and state law through Minnesota’s Olmstead Plan. According to Carpenter, her child’s IEP is not being fully honored. This is because there is a need for workers to support students during their core classes, which means her child is going without support in their electives.
“Just last year, my child’s special education assistant was out of the room for a few minutes because she had to go to the bathroom. My child had a very hard social interaction that led to them being shoved to the floor and having a concussion. That was very hard for my kid and the other kid involved,” said Carpenter. “I am holding my breath as I wait for the inevitable next hard thing my child will experience due to being denied the support they need to be able to learn with their peers.”
As lawmakers discuss school safety on a state level following the shooting at Annunciation Church school in Minneapolis on August 27 that led to the deaths of two children, educators who spend most of their working hours face-to-face with students are facing everyday working conditions that they say put the wellbeing of their students at risk.
Workday Magazine reached out to the district for comment but has not received a response by the time of publication.
“What does safety look like? Safety looks like knowing how you’re going to pay your rent or mortgage,” said MFE Local 59 president Marcia Howard at the rally. “Don’t you let them try to guilt you into saying that a damn near billion dollar contract can’t get re-prioritized and shifted to serve the students and families.”
Although workers in Minnesota tend to receive higher wages than the rest of the U.S., teachers in the state experience one of the largest pay gaps when compared to other college-educated workers.
“I was born and raised in North Minneapolis, and I worked for MPS and struggle to live in the community that I grew up and work in,” said Ambers at the rally. “Everything has increased, from rent, to gas, water, lights. Everything but our pay.”