With recent higher gas prices, many small businesses, nonprofits and residents are looking for ways to reduce their energy costs and keep their buildings comfortable and recent policy changes in Springfield are starting to offer more options for softening the blow.
Paraprofessionals at Easterseals protest working conditions wrex.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from wrex.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
At his public school, Mason, who has autism, was always at the bottom of his class, falling further behind every semester. He was being bullied daily and had zero friends. In short, he was sad. Now, in the specialized environment at Access Group, he is getting A’s in math, always talks about his friends and how kind everyone is, and has shown dramatic improvement in his social and pragmatic skills. He attends school with a big smile on his face!
Similarly, Katie struggled for four years in the public school system. She hated school and started having behavior issues both there and at home. Then, her family moved her to Compass Academy, where she is thriving. Now, she comes home from school singing and dancing as she shows her family her work. She is proud of those A+’s!
She said it is not uncommon for workers to encounter violence and injuries when working with the students. Many of the injuries could be mitigated, if not avoided, she said, if there were more trauma- and crisis-trained paraprofessionals on staff. We re just asking for a safer work environment, and in order to get that we need a fair contract with fair wages to retain and attract more paraprofessionals, she said.
The employees certified their union in October 2019 and have been in negotiations with management since January 2020.
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Schlueter said, has only magnified the dangers of the job and exacerbated the need for more trained employees.