One of the saddest things about the pending Chicago Teachers Union strike is how the CTU has to try to force Mayor Lori Lightfoot to hire more social workers, librarians, and nurses—and lower class sizes.
Before I get to the details, a few words about the 2012 strike. Contrary to what you may have seen or heard, corporate, civic, and editorial Chicago were against that one too, often employing the same language to make their case.
As always, there’s also a chorus or two of “I love the teachers but hate their union.” Or, as the Tribune editorialists wrote: “Teachers, don’t be goaded by your strike-hungry union leaders into a walkout.”
State law prohibits Chicago’s teachers from striking over things like class size and wraparound employees. Basically, CTU can only strike over pay issues.
If CPS fell below those job targets, the union could take the district to arbitration and force officials to do what they don’t want to do—hire more employees. That’s how it works in most suburban school systems.
But you know how it goes with budget promises. There’s a big difference between budgeting for a librarian and actually hiring one.
