By Eric Ruder | May 11, 2023 | ACTS, Movement, News, Press Release, Rights
File under: Charter, charter operator, charter organizing, Charter Schools
CHICAGO—The Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) Thursday commended the Illinois General Assembly for passing a bill that protects Illinois educators from intimidation, retaliation and interference when they organize to join a union in privately operated charter schools, a move that will help educators improve the teaching and learning conditions in their schools. The legislation, HB 1120, requires charter school operators taking public school funding to include a labor neutrality clause as part of its school authorization. Under such a clause, an employer agrees to refrain from opposing or taking a position on union organizing by their employees.
By CTU Communications | April 14, 2023 | ACTS, News
File under: ChiArts: Chicago High School for the Arts, Hope Academy, Instituto del Progreso Latino
CTU members at Instituto del Progreso held a week of action protesting the charter’s attempts to diminish contract protections. ChiArts members, parents and students rallied outside the charter’s regularly scheduled board meeting, which the organization canceled instead of facing public scrutiny. Hope educators voted unanimously to join the CTU and school officials immediately announced it would rather close the school, which mostly serves Black students, instead of bargaining collectively with its workers. In other news, YCLA announced it will be staying put at its Pilsen location.
By CTU Communications | February 21, 2023 | ACTS, News, Press Release
File under: Bilingual Education, Greg Abbott, immigrant students, Ron DeSantis
8:30 a.m. Wednesday, February 22: Press conference to demand great attention be paid by CPS, City Hall, and Charter operators to the classroom resources and wraparound services necessary to meet the needs of newly placed migrants in Chicago.
By Jen Conant, Caroline Rutherford, and Claude Holmes | October 27, 2022 | ACTS, News
First of all, congratulations on a successful October 19 Rally for Supportive, Safe and Sustainable schools (video from the picket line | video from the rally). We had folks from across the city from both charter and district schools show up to fight for more staff,...By CTU Communications | October 18, 2022 | ACTS, News, Press Release
File under: charter operators, INCS
Acute shortages of supports for special education students, English language learners highlight chronic lack of resources while charters’ statewide lobby group advocates for right-wing candidates. 5 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 19: Rank-and-file CTU charter members to picket,...By CTU Communications | October 18, 2022 | ACTS, News
File under: charter operators, INCS
CTU President Stacy Davis Gates sent the following letter to rank and file CTU members on Monday, October 17. Dear CTU family. Late last week, the Union learned that Chicago Public Schools charter operators are bankrolling right-wing politicians and supporting a...By CTU Communications | October 13, 2022 | ACTS, News
File under: Caroline Rutherford, Charter Schools, CTU-ACTS, Jen Conant
The CTU launched the first charter strike in the nation in 2018 and a few months later, embarked on the first ever multi-charter strike. Now, CTU’s Charter division is embarking on another groundbreaking strategy, a coordinated campaign, negotiating contracts at 35 schools in 13 different charter networks simultaneously.
By Maria Moreno, Financial Secretary | October 3, 2022 | ACTS, News
File under: Delegate, Union democracy
On October 18 and 19, 2022 remote nominations meetings will be held for citywide functional groups that have delegate vacancies. If there are more candidates nominated on October 18 than vacant positions, an electronic election will be held on October 24 and 25, 2022. If there are more candidates nominated on October 19 than vacant positions, an electronic election will be held on October 26 and 27, 2022.
By Jennifer Conant, Charter Division Chair | September 2, 2022 | ACTS, News
File under: Charter Schools, fair contract
This summer and fall all of our charter contracts expire – and we have an opportunity to change the landscape of education after the trauma of the pandemic. We are fighting for supportive, safe, and sustainable schools in unionized charters, as phase one of a CTU-wide contract campaign. What we win in the charter space will directly affect district negotiations. Click here to read more.
By CTU Communications | June 3, 2022 | ACTS, News, Press Release
File under: ChiArts: Chicago High School for the Arts
Stagnant wages, lack of job security, no basic rights fueled this week’s vote by artists who serve as part-time educators — from voice teachers to video instructors — to join their full-time colleagues in the CTU. CHICAGO, June 3, 2022 — Teaching artists and school...
