The emphasis was on dignity, respect and student impact as AFSCME Local 3429 members turned out for what proved to be the last in-person meeting of the New Haven Board of Education prior to the COVID-19 shutdown.

Several paraprofessionals spoke out, including bargaining unit President Hyclis Williams and Vice President Minnie Evans, and 50-year veteran Lucille Patton.

“Our members are working two and three jobs to stay afloat. “We’re dedicated workers who continue the best we can be with the little we get,” Williams said. “We need and deserve living wages to support our families. We are the hard-working poor.”

Patton added, “I’m working at this age, because I can’t afford to retire and live. I’m asking for those who are working and who will be working, that when they leave, they will have something to look forward to, that they can afford a little time of relaxation and not worrying day after day, about how they’re going to eat, buy their medication and pay their bills.”

Members of the New Haven community, including parents and fellow AFSCME bargaining unit leaders Harold Brooks (Local 3144) and Tom DeLucia (Local 287), also spoke and called on the Board of Education to do better by the paras.

The media was paying attention, too.

As reported by the New Haven Independent, “New Haven’s paraprofessionals…say they’ve long felt disregarded within the school system. After years of broken promises, the union, which is largely made up of women of color, is fighting to change those working conditions.” 

Click here to read the article “Paraprofessionals Plead For Higher Pay” in the Independent.