Posts tagged Chicago
Chicago teachers want no school on May Day, testing the city’s mayor and school leaders
April 12, 2026 // “What our students need, and what history teaches us is the only thing that works, is educators, labor unions, and community groups standing together to defend each other and our democracy and demand that the government put our families over their fortunes,” the CTU said in a statement. This week, Macquline King, the newly-named district CEO, said she had no plans to cancel class.
Op-ed: Chicago’s Minimum-Wage Retreat
March 23, 2026 // Chicago’s distressed dining scene—recently described as “on the brink of collapse”—was bolstered by good news last week, as the City Council voted to halt future increases in the minimum wage for servers and bartenders. This is a setback for progressive Mayor Brandon Johnson, who counts the wage hike as one of his administration’s few accomplishments. But it’s good news for Chicagoans. Chicago’s wage woes date to 2023, when Mr. Johnson made raising the tipped minimum wage an early priority after being elected. It was an unusual choice: Servers and bartenders already earn more than minimum wage, especially in Chicago, where a typical restaurant worker reportedly earns nearly $30 an hour between the lower base wage and tips.
One TRiiBE, divided?
March 23, 2026 // After the TRiiBE management terminated two employees in January and early March, their last two remaining union-eligible employees—Tonia Hill, who covers the systemic racism beat, and culture correspondent Jerome “Rome J.” Johnson, who covers arts and entertainment, make up the TRiiBE’s award-winning editorial desk—will vote on March 25 on whether to join the Chicago News Guild. The union represents journalists and staff across legacy, alternative, and now nonprofit and independent newsrooms, including multiple Chicago-area news outlets such as the Chicago Sun-Times, the Chicago Tribune, and the Reader.
ProPublica’s unionized staff vote to authorize strike: ‘We are ready to walk off the job’
March 22, 2026 // The unionized staff at ProPublica voted to authorize a strike Thursday evening, declaring they were "ready to walk off the job" in order to send a message to management.
CTU plans to join May 1 ‘no school, no work’ day of action, wants classes canceled
March 14, 2026 // On Wednesday the union’s 730-member House of Delegates approved a resolution to join a national movement calling for a day of “no school, no work, no shopping.” Participants plan to call for higher taxes on the wealthy, better-funded schools, protections for immigrants and other reforms. Union leaders cited several reasons for participating, including to “demand ICE out of our cities,” referring to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, and “tax the rich to support our schools and vital services,” according to the resolution. It also says public education is facing attacks from “MAGA politicians” who support the policies of President Donald Trump and “corporate interests.”
Op-ed: Chicago Teachers and Students Deserve Better
March 8, 2026 // Concerns about oversight extend beyond the union itself. Reports from inspectors general in Chicago Public Schools have identified troubling issues, including fraud tied to falsified enrollment data in the American Indian Education program, which forced the district to repay $1.2 million in federal funds covering the years 2016 through 2023. Spending patterns have also raised eyebrows. District travel costs increased dramatically, from roughly $300,000 in 2021 to nearly $8 million in 2024, covering extensive travel and accommodations at a time when many families and educators were focused on recovering from pandemic learning loss. Meanwhile, student outcomes remain deeply concerning. Only about 18 percent of CPS students in grades three through eight are proficient in math, and just 31 percent are proficient in reading.
CHICAGO: BP presents ‘last, best and final offer’ in union negotiations
March 4, 2026 // BP’S other changes include a discontinuation of non-core craft lines, eligibility for up to five paid shifts of sick leave per year, increased overtime meal payments by 33%, increased boot allowance by 25%, flexibility to adopt artificial intelligence technology, “more equitable” distribution of overtime drafts and a four-day, 10-hour work schedule for maintenance technicians, according to the website. USW President 7-1 Eric Schultz responded to the offer in a Tuesday afternoon statement. He claims that it eliminates and outsources union jobs, cuts base wages across most job classifications, strips bargaining rights, ends seniority protections for layoffs and limits the union’s ability to strike.
Lawmakers join Chicago Teachers Union to push for more school funding
February 12, 2026 // State lawmakers have introduced legislation backed by the Chicago Teachers Union to immediately increase evidence-based funding and additional public school services. Republicans say Illinois' taxes already are too high. State Sen. Graciela Guzmán, D-Chicago, is a former CTU organizer.
Bride-to-be faces bizarre bullying campaign by labor union over hotel she chose to host her wedding
February 11, 2026 // Shortly after making the innocent recommendation, the 25-year-old future bride was inundated with bizarre abuse from union members, who even showed up outside her job and protested over her mention of the hotel. 'They started calling my personal number, and then they started calling my friends, and then their workplace as well,' Johnson told CBS News. The angry group even went as far as to send fake wedding invitations to her friends and family that stated: 'Love is a choice. So is standing with workers. Say "I don't" to this union boycotted hotel.'
Commentary: In the Glass Hive of Art News: Dark Clouds at the Met, Boston’s MFA
February 5, 2026 // Two weeks ago, unions grabbed the pot of gold at the end of the phony-baloney rainbow when the Metropolitan Museum of Art staff voted 542–172 to join the United Auto Workers. Counterintuitive, I know, but the UAW has a portfolio of bargaining units that includes boutique left-wing, white-collar culture workers such as the curators, conservators, librarians, archivists, designers, marketeers, visitor-services coordinators, and fundraisers at the Met. Along with bread-and-butter issues, these workers can be mobilized to wail over false values like open borders, which suppress working-class wages, the climate change hoax, Black Lives Matter, Celebrate Your Abortion, Me Too, No Kings, From the River to the Sea, any or all while wearing “pussy hats,” which, ladies and real wannabe ladies, don’t flatter. So, a juicy, fresh plum is now added to the UAW stash.