PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The School Committee and the Pittsfield Federation of School Employees Local 1315 have filed for mediation after failing to come to an agreement over the past year.
The union, which represents support staff including bus drivers, cafeteria works and paraprofessionals, has been negotiating a new three-year collective bargaining agreement since last summer. The current agreement expired in August 2021.
Union members attended the School Committee's budget meeting on March 30 to push for better pay and working conditions. The union is asking that support staff be allocated more than $600,000 over the next three years for wage increases.
School Committee Vice Chair Daniel Elias, who chairs the negotiations subcommittee, said in a statement that "the School Committee has concluded that the assistance of a mediator at this stage of bargaining will help us reach a settlement that is both fair to our employees and cognizant of the committee's responsibilities over the three years we expect the final agreement to cover."
The mediation is being sought through the state's Department of Labor Relations.
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Berkshire Organizations Awarded Stories Grants
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Manos Unidas, of Pittsfield and Multicultural BRIDGE, of Lee were both awarded Mass Humanities' Expand Massachusetts Stories (EMS) grants.
The EMS grants support storytelling projects that provide a more complete, more nuanced picture of life in the Commonwealth, according to a press release. Since launching EMS in 2021, Mass Humanities has prioritized funding projects that give voice to those who are often excluded from mainstream histories and stories. In total, the foundation has distributed more than $3 million to date, supporting the completion of audio tours, documentary films, oral histories, public events, and archival research.
This fall, Mass Humanities concluded its fourth round of the EMS initiative by providing $1.2 million in grant funding to 64 cultural nonprofit organizations across Massachusetts.
Manos Unidas was awarded $20,000 to supoport Raíces de Cuentos, an oral history project that will collect under heard stories related to the resilience and struggles of flight and relocation across generations from Latino immigrants in Pittsfield.
Multicultural BRIDGE was awarded $20,000 to support Migration Stories, an oral history project expanding on Multicultural BRIDGE's Berkshire Mosaic, in partnership with BTW Berkshires as an oral historian and journalist, to create a community digital archive, of, for and by Black, immigrant and indigenous communities in the Berkshires, involving a series of events.
"We live in a moment that calls for new narratives and new opportunities to reimagine the past, present, and future of Massachusetts," said Brian Boyles, Executive Director of Mass Humanities. "This year's Expand Mass Stories projects give local people the chance to chronicle and celebrate their communities with dignity and hope. On behalf of our board and staff, congratulations to these bold, courageous storytellers."
The number of EMS grantees increased by 50 percent from last year, from 42 to 64 organizations. The percentage of BIPOC-led grants is the highest it has ever been, at 89.6 percent.
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