Laid-Off Nashua School Custodians Protest Firing

Some of the 101 Nashua school custodians fired in a recent cost-cutting move protested the decision in front of the Nashua Board of Education Monday night.

Earlier this month, the board voted 7-1 to end its contract with the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, which represents the Nashua custodial workers.

On Monday, protesters lined up outside the board’s regularly scheduled meeting.

Board President George Farrington said the contract decision was a difficult one.

“We are at a point where reducing a little here and there isn’t going to be enough to make the budget work as we go forward,” Farrington told the board. “It is time for fundamental changes in the methods and means by which we conduct certain school district operations. I understand that change is difficult and can even be painful for those most closely impacted by it. I don’t make this decision lightly, but I firmly believe this is a necessary course of action for us.”

The board is now looking to hire a private company to provide custodial workers.

The Nashua Labor Coalition balked at the move. Chairwoman Deb Howes said the board should have gathered more input from the community before making its decision.

“This ill-conceived plan by the Board of Education is wrong,” Howes said in a statement. “Outsourcing to private contractors sounds like a great deal at first, but as the Board saw with our private busing service, the cost dramatically increases and the taxpayers end up paying more in the end.”

An online petition demanding the board reverse its decision garnered more than 1,000 signatures.