[ Fighting for You ]

After 13 years, Lawrence teachers ink new contract

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lot can happen in 13 years. For schools, a child will enter kindergarten and graduate high school. But for the Lawrence Teachers Association, something was absent for that length of time: a current contract.

a line of Long Island educators walk a crosswalk while holding support posters
file photo
Hundreds of Long Island educators join their colleagues from the Lawrence Teachers Association at an April 2023 rally to fight for a fair contract. The local worked more than a decade under an expired agreement, finally settling a new contract in December 2024.
Hung up by an intransigent board of education, Lawrence teachers toiled for more than a decade under an expired deal. The length of time working under an expired contract stretched to the longest in the state. It became harder and harder to recruit and retain qualified teachers to support the children of Lawrence as the contract dispute dragged on.

And then finally, with a quickness that was the antithesis of everything that had happened the past 13 years, the contract was settled. In a matter of weeks, it went from irrevocably stalled to signed, sealed and delivered.

“There is a huge sense of relief,” said Rachel Kreiss, president of the Lawrence TA. “We’ve already seen an increase in morale among our members and feeling valued for the work that we do.”

Kreiss has overseen the end of a contract dispute that spanned two Lawrence TA presidents. She credits her membership for standing together in solidarity, holding the line and continuing to make their voices heard.

“The LTA stood together every step of the way,” Kreiss said about her members. “Days, weeks, over a decade of hard and thankless work.”

The Lawrence TA started pressure campaigns on the district administration and board years ago under former president Lori Skonberg. These included wearing union T-shirts to school, attending board meetings, picketing after school and on weekends. Kreiss credits the ongoing participation in this pressure campaign and members presenting a unified front as being essential to finally getting the district to negotiate a contract acceptable to the union.

But a union is a family, and Kreiss credits the support the local received from their union siblings on Long Island, especially other Nassau County locals, as a key piece to completing the new contract.

“The support of our other NYSUT locals across Long Island has been incredible,” said Kreiss. “Our retirees, too. They sprung into action whenever we asked, helped us pack rallies with hundreds of people in attendance.”

One of those rallies took place in April 2023, when hundreds of union members from across Long Island joined the LTA to march through downtown Lawrence in the rain, demanding action on a contract. American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten joined soon-to-be NYSUT President Melinda Person and soon-to-be NYSUT Executive Vice President Jaime Ciffone at the march.

“We really appreciated the support from Randi, Melinda and Jaime at the rally,” said Kreiss. “And the support from every NYSUT department: counsel’s office, legislation, communications, research and ed. But especially field services and everyone at the Nassau Regional Office, our former RSD Matt Jacobs and our LRS Lloyd Berko. They were there every step of the way to support us, help us plan, engage in bargaining and respond to my emergency phone calls.”

The new contract, which lasts for four years and includes cost-of-living increases and raises for coaches and extracurricular supervisors, was ratified by the LTA membership and approved by the Lawrence board of education. As for what is next, Kreiss says she is looking forward to a “new normal,” so to speak.

“We want to use this settlement as a springboard in the future. But for now we’re looking to continue our solidarity with our membership, retain the highly qualified members that we have and attract new ones, and continue to provide a quality education to all Lawrence students. It’ll be nice to do that without an expired contract hanging over us.”