Chicago Public Schools classes are canceled Thursday ahead of a planned teachers strike.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot says she can’t accept the Chicago Teachers Unions’ demands, saying they would cost $ 2.5 billion that the city can’t afford.
“We value the workers … Honoring that value is who I am and what I stand for,” the mayor said. “But I also must be responsible for the taxpayers who pay for everything that goes on. ”
CPS CEO Janice Jackson said classes were canceled on the expectation that the union’s House of Delegates will vote with their bargaining team’s recommendation to go forward with a strike. The delegates are scheduled to meet this afternoon.
“We’re assuming that the House of Delegates will vote today to move forward with a strike, and as a result all classes and after school activities will be cancelled tomorrow,” CPS CEO Janice Jackson said. “This includes team practices and competitions, tutoring, field trips, internships, Parent University activities and all other community activities.”
She stressed the schools will remain open and meals will be served to children who need a place to go. Other organizations like parks and libraries are also offering programming for CPS schoolchildren.More details here.
About 300, 000 CPS students and their families would be affected by a strike, as well as about 25, 000 Teachers. Another 7, 000 security guards, bus aides, special education aides and custodians are also without a contract and could also strike Thursday
One big priority for the union has been placing more social workers, counselors , librarians and nurses in schools, as well as those who can assist thousands of schoolchildren who don’t have a permanent residence. In recent days, though, the CTU has said members might be open to a phase-in if it started with schools in areas where children are more likely to experience trauma.
Wednesday, ahead of the resumption of talks, the sides traded sharp words in dueling news conferences, with the union questioning Lightfoot’s “role in the city” and the mayor saying the union has “been signaling to us for a long time that they intended to strike.”
CTU Vice President Stacy Davis Gates told reporters: “Negotiating in good faith means that we reach a settlement. If (Lightfoot) cannot land a deal with teachers then you have to question her role with the city. ”
Lightfoot’s strategy, Davis Gates said, “is to take back everything that we have won in previous contracts and hand it back. … We are holding her accountable. “
Lightfoot, however, says the city simply can’t afford to meet all the union’s demands.
Throughout negotiations, Lightfoot said her team has tried to remain optimistic about reaching a deal despite the union making it clear its members intended to strike. Lightfoot said she doesn’t expect a last-minute deal to be struck before Thursday.
“There will not be school tomorrow,” Lightfoot said. “The union has been crystal clear that they are going to strike.”
Lightfoot wouldn’t say how long she expects a strike to last.
“I don’t want to speculate about that,” Lightfoot said. “I think we need to get back to the table and get the outstanding issues resolved as quickly as possible.”
She reiterated her argument that she’s put a good deal on the table for the union, highlighting a 16% raise for teachers and 38% raise for support staff.
“Without question, the deal we put on the table is the best in the Chicago Teacher Union’s history,” Lightfoot said.
She also said her team has proposed more than 80 changes to the contract on issues requested by the union, including enforceable targets on class-sizes in high-poverty schools and staffing level support.
“They wanted us to put it in writing and that’s exactly what we did,” Lightfoot said. “At every turn, we bent over backwards to meet the union’s needs and deliver a contract that reflect our shared values and visions for our schools and the support of our students.”
As the daughter of a union steelworker, Lightfoot said she believes in collective bargaining and the right to strike. But today, “it is clear that this is not one of those moments.”
Despite the union publicly saying that its two big unresolved issues are class size and staffing, Lightfoot said they’ve raised additional bargaining issues behind the scenes that aren’t economically feasible. The union also wants to shorten classroom time for 30 minutes in the morning, Lightfoot said.
“We won’t do that,” Lightfoot said. “We will not cheat our children out of instructional time. I won’t agree to any changes that do that. ”
Beyond the 16 percent raises offered by Lightfoot, the union wants an additional $ 230 million in teacher pay over the course of the contract, the mayor said. She also said the union wants to “go back to wasteful practices, like getting paid out for unused sick leave, which would cost CPS $ 25 million a year conservatively. ”
“ We can’t agree to that. CPS finances are still recovering from the brink of insolvency and we do not have unlimited funds, ”Lightfoot said. “Our offer to teachers and support staff is responsible to taxpayers.”
CPS Board President Miguel Del Valle said he believes the union “at this point has stopped bargaining in good faith.”
“I encourage them to go back to the bargaining table and resolve this as quickly as possible so that the work stoppage does not last long, ”Del Valle said. “We don’t want a long work stoppage.”
Asked if she agrees with Del Valle, Lightfoot said, “I think they have been signaling to us for a long time that they intended to strike. We’ve tried despite that to work through as many issues as possible to meet them on as many of their demands as we responsibly could but it’s not a surprise that this day has come because through what they have and haven’t done at the bargaining table, it seemed obvious this is the direction they were heading. ”
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