Southbridge School Committee Trains on Collective Bargaining as 2027 Contract Cycle Nears

SOUTHBRIDGE -- May 21, 2026, Southbridge School Committee receives collective bargaining training as four union contracts near expiration. The committee, meeting in Council Chambers on May 21, heard a roughly hour-long presentation from Tracy, a trainer with the Massachusetts Association of School Committees, covering the committee's obligations under Massachusetts General Law Chapter 150E, negotiating team formation, conflict-of-interest rules, and the state's impasse and mediation process. Five of seven members attended; Frank Kambinsky and Norma Tisnick were absent. Staff confirmed that contracts covering teachers, educational assistants, and custodial and maintenance employees all expire June 30, 2027, with food service and administrative assistants under agreements running through June 30, 2028. A committee member said she expected affected units to formally open bargaining in the fall of 2026, with timelines running four to twelve months per unit. The committee also noted that Southbridge's phase three transition plan, awaiting state commissioner approval, includes a provision for committee member involvement in the upcoming bargaining process, modeled on conditions attached to Holyoke's exit from state receivership.