[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 450 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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118th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. RES. 450
Expressing the sense of the Senate that paraprofessionals and education
support staff should have fair compensation, benefits, and working
conditions.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
November 6, 2023
Mr. Markey (for himself, Mr. Sanders, and Ms. Warren) submitted the
following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Health,
Education, Labor, and Pensions
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Expressing the sense of the Senate that paraprofessionals and education
support staff should have fair compensation, benefits, and working
conditions.
Whereas paraprofessionals (also sometimes known as ``paraeducators'') include
education assistants and instructional assistants who work in elementary
schools, secondary schools, or public institutions of higher education;
Whereas education support staff (also sometimes known as ``classified school
employees'' or ``education support professionals'') include
professionals who work in elementary schools, secondary schools, or
public institutions of higher education in clerical and administrative
services, transportation services, food and nutrition services,
custodial and maintenance services, health and student services,
technical services, and skilled trades;
Whereas more than 3,000,000 paraprofessionals and education support staff are
the frontline workers who transform schools in the United States from
brick and mortar buildings to places of learning and support for more
than 49,000,000 students across the United States;
Whereas, since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, school staff employment has
fallen across positions and there are still 331,000 fewer school staff
than before the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving schools without the necessary
staff in almost every position;
Whereas, since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, a shortage of teachers has
resulted in some paraprofessionals and education support staff being
expected to assume the duties of teachers without commensurate
compensation or benefits;
Whereas many paraprofessionals and education support staff are undercompensated
for their work, and do not receive a living wage, much less a
competitive, family-sustaining living wage;
Whereas many paraprofessionals and education support staff are, as a matter of
practice, laid off at the end of each school year and rehired annually,
and lack job security;
Whereas, unlike most school employees, many paraprofessionals and education
support staff are not full-time employees because their services,
including those of bus drivers and food service workers, are time
delimited;
Whereas many paraprofessionals and education support staff lack access to high-
quality, affordable health care because they are intentionally hired for
insufficient hours to receive health and retirement benefits, or
otherwise are charged exorbitant employee premiums for health insurance;
Whereas, while paraprofessionals and education support staff are often the most
diverse subset of school employees, are more likely to have grown up in
the communities they serve, and are the trusted school community members
for many students and parents, the voices of paraprofessionals and
education support staff are not always valued in forming school
policies;
Whereas paraprofessionals and education support staff often serve students
facing systemic barriers, but are often excluded from professional
growth and development opportunities;
Whereas, like many school employees, paraprofessionals and education support
staff are too often subject to workplace violence and other safety
hazards, including contaminants and extreme temperatures;
Whereas paraprofessionals and education support staff deserve real solutions
that would empower them to--
(1) work in a stable, safe environment;
(2) have multi-year job security;
(3) receive livable and competitive wages, access to sufficient hours,
and fair compensation for their work; and
(4) have a voice on the job and meaningful input in school policy;
Whereas respecting paraprofessionals and education support staff is essential to
creating and maintaining safe and supportive school environments that
are conducive to students learning and thriving; and
Whereas Congress seeks to recognize the rights, respect, and dignity that
paraprofessionals and education support staff deserve as they continue
to care for and educate the next generation: Now, therefore, be it:
Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that--
(1) paraprofessionals and education support staff--
(A) should be compensated at a rate that is a
livable, competitive wage;
(B) should have access to high-quality, affordable
healthcare and healthcare benefits at a de minimus
personal cost;
(C) should be considered to be eligible employees
under the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29
U.S.C. 2601 et seq.);
(D) should be entitled to 16 weeks of paid family
and medical leave;
(E) should have paid leave for all planned and
unforeseen school closures, including weather-related
closures, professional development days, and other
short-term closures;
(F) should have access to meaningful and free or
affordable professional growth and development
opportunities during regular paid working hours that
provide a path to career advancement;
(G) should have sufficient resources and supplies
to enable them to do their job effectively and
efficiently, including up-to-date technology;
(H) should have access to training and appropriate
personal protective equipment;
(I) should have representation in organizations
that determine policies that may affect the working
conditions of paraprofessionals and education support
staff;
(J) should receive notification and the opportunity
to provide significant input about the implementation
of electronic monitoring, data, algorithms, and
artificial intelligence technology in the applicable
school and should receive high-quality professional
development as new technologies are introduced;
(K) should have adequate notice and opportunity to
participate, when appropriate, in individualized
education program meetings, behavior intervention team
meetings, and other similar meetings relating to the
students the paraprofessionals and education support
staff support, to the extent permitted by law;
(L) should experience a safe and healthy working
environment free from recognized hazards that cause or
are likely to cause death or serious physical harm;
(M) should experience appropriate staffing levels
to ensure that students have adequate support and that
paraprofessionals and education support staff can
complete their jobs effectively, efficiently, and
safely;
(N) should receive adequate notification regarding
the duration of their employment;
(O) should have an employment contract that
includes a provision for the automatic renewal of the
contract at the expiration of the contract, rather than
the automatic termination of the contract at such
expiration, and a provision for termination of
employment for just cause, rather than termination of
employment at will; and
(P) should have a process for reporting workplace
issues and concerns to their employer in a manner that
protects paraprofessionals and education support staff
and other employees from retaliation;
(2) in recognition of the importance of collective
bargaining in maintaining good working conditions, employers of
paraprofessionals and education support staff should--
(A) engage in good faith negotiations;
(B) strive to reach timely and just contracts that
fairly compensate and protect paraprofessionals and
education support staff;
(C) refrain from replacing paraprofessionals or
education support staff who engage in a strike; and
(D) refrain from locking out such workers; and
(3) nothing in this resolving clause should be interpreted
to supersede, or as an expression of the Senate's support for
any law that would supersede, employment terms or conditions
agreed upon in collective bargaining agreements that are more
beneficial to paraprofessionals and education support staff
than those described in this resolving clause.
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