Recent comments in /f/massachusetts

bostondotcom OP t1_j8jcl2f wrote

Reply to There’s a push to give teachers (and other public employees) the right to strike in Mass. What to know. by bostondotcom

From reporter Dialynn Dwyer:

An effort is underway in Massachusetts to legalize the right to strike for some public employees — including teachers.

The push to give educators and other unionized employees in the public sector — excluding public safety workers like police and fire — the right to go on strike began in the last session of the state Legislature. A new iteration of the proposal, “An Act uplifting families and securing the right to strike for certain public employees,” was filed last month as a companion bill in both the Senate and House. The legislation would allow unions to legally strike after six months of failed negotiations with their employers.

Twelve states give public school educators the right to strike, according to the Massachusetts Teachers Association, which has named the proposal in the Bay State one of its legislative priorities for 2023-2024.

The move comes as the start of the year saw teachers go on strike in Woburn for a week after working without a contract since the fall. Schools were closed in the city for five days as negotiations stretched on.

Because the strike was illegal, the union was subject to thousands of dollars in fines. Ultimately, the union accumulated up to $85,000 in fines from the state; it also agreed to pay $225,000 in damages to the city over four years and $20,000 to local charities, the Boston Herald reports.

The union has reached out to the community for help in the face of those costs, and so far, families and businesses in the city have responded, with more than $50,000 pouring in to the GoFundMe fundraiser started for the educators. The Woburn Teachers Association has said the encouragement received from parents and other members of the community through their strike kept them “strong and affirmed that [they] were doing the right thing.”

Yet, there remains debate in Massachusetts about whether teachers and other unionized public sector employees should legally have the right to strike. Supporters of the proposal say the measure is needed to level the playing field at the bargaining table, while opponents argue it is a bullying tactic that will only hurt students and families.

Read more about the stances behind those who support and oppose the effort to legalize the right to strike for teachers: https://www.boston.com/news/politics/2023/02/14/teachers-public-employees-right-to-strike-legislation/

14

IntelligentCicada363 t1_j8jbgqy wrote

Reply to comment by PabloX68 in Why is the Masspike the only toll road in Mass? by bostexa

Adding tolls to pay for maintenance would have benefits. Perhaps the biggest for highways would be that it would remove a lot of power the federal government has over the states.

The drinking age being 21 in every state is not even a "law" in the traditional sense. The federal government instead simply says that if it isn't 21, they will take away all of a state's highway funding. They do this for many things.

​

I also think that private passenger vehicles should pay the real cost to use the incredibly expensive and destructive infrastructure that highways are.

1

PabloX68 t1_j8j5ser wrote

Reply to comment by Proof-Variation7005 in Why is the Masspike the only toll road in Mass? by bostexa

Yes, if EV ownership increases significantly, tax revenue for road maintenance will need to be rethought somehow and maybe that means tolls. However, that's not going to help with local roads unless the toll taking technology changes substantially. In other words, fuel taxes affect people regardless of whether they use local roads or highways.

2

PabloX68 t1_j8j3rch wrote

Reply to comment by bostexa in Why is the Masspike the only toll road in Mass? by bostexa

Good lesson in how governments often work (with the MA state government being a prime example).

The tolls were added to the Pike because they were required to fund the construction. Once the bonds were paid off, the tolls were supposed to be removed and of course, that never happened. Instead, the Turnpike Authority made a good effort to preserve their own existence by maintaining the pike to a level far beyond the other highways in the state. They also wasted a ton of money by hiring toll takers (typically friends and family of politicians or turnpike authority execs) for ridiculous salaries to do mindless jobs.

Then, of course, the Big Dig came and tolls were used to help fund that.

Now this politician wants to "start a conversation" (i.e. waste legislature time) to apply this wrong to the rest of the state. Great.

30