Four years after the Chicago Teachers Union members authorized an 8-day strike that impacted 400,000 students, the Chicago Teachers Union voted to authorize another strike. The governing body of the CTU will determine whether to send a 10-day strike notice to state Education Labor Relations Board. Chicago Public Schools spokesperson believes that a strike can be avoided. “A strike is a very serious step that affects the lives of thousands of parents and children, and we hope that before taking the final steps toward a strike, the CTU’s leadership works hard at the bargaining table to reach a fair deal.”
In 2012, some of the issues on the table were length of school days, evaluations being tied to performance and potential job losses. This year, the fight continues over compensation including whether or not the struggling district budget can continue the long-standing arrangement of picking up the bulk of teacher’s required pension contributions. Teachers have been working without a contract for more than a year as the two sides fight to reach a consensus.
Considering the 7-day strike in 2012 and the one day strike in April, Mayor Rahm Emanuel may want to take this matter seriously. If the strike is authorized, teachers could walkout as early as October 11th. The impact of the walkout will have lasting effects on the school system. The mayor is asking that teachers work to be a part of the solution.
What do you think? Is a strike the right course of action? Comment below
