Pictured from left to right: BASE Board of Directors: Bill Lamb (Vice President), Greg Bussiere, Lea Crane (Treasurer), Steve Thomes, Ellen Lachapelle (President), Lori Beatham
Lea Crane and a group of Education Support Professionals in Portland are stepping up to meet the needs of multilingual staff in their bargaining unit.
When a grieving colleague didn’t know she had bereavement leave, Lea Crane realized something powerful: understanding your union contract isn’t just about benefits, it’s about dignity.
Her coworker had just lost her brother and was still showing up to work, unaware that the contract allowed her time off to grieve. That moment stuck with Crane. “I realized not everyone knows what’s in our contract,” she says. “Especially if English isn’t their first language.”
Crane immediately worked with the employee’s manager to find coverage and made sure her colleague could take the time she needed. Since then, Crane has become a trusted resource for many members of the Benefit Association of School Employees (BASE).
“After that experience, people started coming to me with questions about their contract,” she says. She saw an opportunity to support her colleagues and help them understand the rights and benefits they might not even know they had.
BASE represents more than 200 Education Support Professionals in Portland Public Schools (PPS)—custodians, food service workers, administrative assistants, computer technicians, maintenance staff, and transportation—who keep the district running every day. The union is committed to making sure every member understands their rights, their benefits, and the strength that comes from standing together.
Determined to make a change, Crane reached out to Portland’s Multilingual and Multicultural Center (MMC), a department that typically supports students and families, and suggested a new initiative. She wanted to ensure multilingual staff had access to translation services and a space to better understand their union contract and workplace procedures.
“Our district does so much for students and families. But our employees deserve that same support.”
Lea Crane
Together with BASE leaders from across job classifications, Crane helped organize a series of meetings designed to educate bargaining unit members about their collective bargaining agreement. “We covered everything,” she says. “Sick time, vacation, retirement—things people didn’t even know they had.”
Through her collaboration with MMC, Crane hosted more than a dozen small-group meetings during the school year, providing translators in seven languages. These sessions covered everything from timecard and payroll issues to paid time off and basic rights in the contract. Crane and other BASE leaders even convinced department heads to allow these meetings to happen on the clock—ensuring staff were paid for their time and could fully engage.
“A lot of people will agree that things are good ideas, but nothing happens,” says Bill Lamb, BASE Vice President. “Lea talked about this but also took the initiative to convince the Multilingual Center to provide us with translators and make sure that the staff across classifications received this support.”
For many BASE members, this is their first time working under a union contract. Navigating the collective bargaining agreement can be challenging—especially when cultural and language differences are involved. BASE leaders say it’s common for members to have questions about sick time, retirement, paid family medical leave, and how to correctly request paid time off.
“The staff were surprised to learn how much flexibility they had,” Crane says. “They didn’t know about the different types of leave or how to request it.”
Through these meetings, Crane observed noticeable gaps when it came to unfamiliar aspects of the collective bargaining agreement. Benefits like the sick bank and the Maine Public Employees Retirement System (MainePERS), which are unique to public employment, were new concepts for employees who hadn’t encountered them in previous jobs.
“People were so surprised when they learned about the benefits of our sick bank,” she says. “You just don’t know what you don’t know.”
Many were also relieved to discover they were already building toward a secure retirement simply by being part of the MainePERS system. With the help of translators, Crane walked members through the basics of these benefits, making complex systems—like the sick bank, MainePERS, and contract language—more accessible and easier to understand.
“It was very rewarding for me to be able to give a colleague advice and be able to help them with something meaningful,” she says.
Even though a basic understanding of the contract is essential—it outlines everything from benefits to working conditions—BASE President Ellen Lachappelle says many members don’t seek help or read the contract until they’re facing a problem.
“People don’t always read the contract until they’re in trouble. That’s why outreach is so important. We try to connect with members early, let them know about upcoming meetings, and get them involved. Knowledge is power, and it’s important to us to make sure our members understand that.”
BASE President Ellen Lachappelle
Former grievance chairperson Greg Bussiere has seen firsthand how easily members can misunderstand their benefits, especially when it comes to long-term leave requests. “I’ve helped members who had a hard time applying for disability,” he says. “One member was hearing impaired and wasn’t receiving communication from the benefits person. On top of that, they had a knee injury and couldn’t work.”
“As things grow and become more diverse, it is important to recognize these needs, and know it might take time,” says Lachapelle. BASE leaders advocated for dedicated MMC support to be included in the district’s 2025-2026 school budget—and hope to bargain for a permanent change in their upcoming contracts.
The result of BASE’s advocacy has been powerful. Many potential members who attended sessions or spoke with Crane or others to learn more about their contract have since become dues-paying members of BASE and MEA, strengthening their collective voice, and expanding their reach across all represented job classifications.
BASE leaders have made a distinct effort to connect with members not just about contract issues, but about the power of union solidarity. “We started communicating more regularly,” says Lamb. “One member told us, ‘No one had contacted me directly in 20 years.’ That really stuck with us.”
These intentional efforts to improve communication and raise awareness of cultural and language barriers have also brought the unit closer together. “We’re a lot more present than we used to be, members know who we are,” says Bussiere.
Crane says she has seen the impact firsthand. “After educating employees about what we do and why staying unified matters about 90% have signed up to join,” she says. “They realized they wanted a voice and that they already have one.”
For Crane, the work is deeply personal and rewarding. “I love the diversity here [at PPS],” she says. “I learn something new every day from different cultures, and I don’t need to travel anywhere. I get to explore the world without leaving work.”
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