Winthrop School Committee Delivers Contract Counter-Proposals to Teachers Union

WINTHROP — March 18, 2026 — Winthrop School Committee presents package contract counter-proposals to teachers union in special open session. Meeting at Winthrop High School Library on March 18, the committee offered three alternative salary schedules for teachers and three for educational support professionals, with teacher options ranging from tiered step increases of 1.9 to 3.5 percent annually up to a flat 2 percent increase with new top steps added in 2027 and 2028. The committee also proposed paid parental leave providing 10 fully paid days for both birthing and non-birthing parents without drawing on accrued leave, plus a 10 percent preschool tuition discount for employees' children. A town official told union representatives that 74 percent of the district's roughly $40 million fiscal year 2026 budget goes to salaries and benefits, and that the town's 85 percent health insurance premium contribution — a figure union members pressed hard to preserve — had no formal guarantee but was expected to hold. The committee voted 5-0 to enter executive session, from which it adjourned directly, with a formal bargaining session scheduled for the following week.