The CTU applauds Mayor Brandon Johnson and Deputy Mayor of Education, Youth & Human Services Jennifer Johnson for centering the voices of students, parents, educators, clinicians and community members in their recent appointments to the Chicago Board of Education.
CHICAGO — On Wednesday, CTU members, students and community members will hold a press conference demanding that the mayoral-controlled CPS comply with the law and ensure that all the city public schools are healthy, climate-resilient and well resourced to prepare students for the 21st century. Coming on the heels of CTU’s first annual Environmental Justice (EJ) Freedom School, a program designed to equip students with the means to become agents of environmental change in their communities, the press conference will incorporate the voices of students and their campaign to make sure that their school buildings are safe, welcoming, thriving, green and sustainable, which is especially important given the current state of unhealthy air quality throughout Chicago.
CTU leaders, City Council members, rank-and-file educators and community partners are holding an informational picket and press conference at 8:45 a.m. tomorrow at the Chicago Board of Education to present budget concerns around school staffing, capital improvements and long-term district sustainability.
“Our members are resolved to continue working, teaching their students and doing so safely,” President Sharkey said. “Only the mayor can force a strike, and if it comes to that, that’s her choice. We choose safety.”
An independent arbitrator found that school buildings are unsafe and ordered that clerks and other staff should be allowed to work remotely at least four days a week. But the mayor decided she’s above the law and refused to abide by that ruling.
We have reached agreements with the Chicago Board of Education regarding veteran (longevity) pay and strike pay for 52-week employees.
We remain committed to working with the mayor and her appointed Board of Education collaboratively, and we’ll continue to bargain with management to ensure that its promises become real in our schools and in our communities.
After fighting on picket lines for 11 days—six of them unpaid—we still had to fight Chicago Public Schools for wages and benefits already earned. Here is where we stand as we enter Winter Break.
For years, the Union has been advocating for the Board of Ed to give credit for more years of outside teaching and relevant work experience, which is now subject to change.
