Posts tagged Chicago
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.
Foodservice Workers at Two High Schools Win Campaign to Remove SEIU Union Bosses
February 4, 2026 // According to NLRB Region 13’s Decision and Direction of Election, the decertification election would have taken place near the end of January in the staff cafeterias of both Lyons Township High School North and Lyons Township High School South. However, ahead of the election, SEIU union officials disclaimed interest in maintaining control over the work unit, likely fearing a lopsided vote result against the union.
CTU alleges rival union conspired with the boss in fight over low-wage CPS employees
February 3, 2026 // In an escalation of an ongoing turf war over low-wage school district employees, the Chicago Teachers Union has accused the Chicago Board of Education of conspiring with a rival union to undermine its bargaining unit. The allegation is the latest example of ongoing acrimony between the two once-allied progressive labor unions, a fracture with major implications for city politics and for Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson. Local 73 of the Service Employees International Union called the accusation of conspiring with the boss “unfortunate, baseless, and unsupported by any evidence” and said its goal was only to improve the wages and working conditions of the workers.
Chicago Teachers Union sparks backlash with video harassing Target employees over ICE as test scores plummet
February 1, 2026 // "The CTU can’t help itself — they feel compelled to weigh in on every political issue," Teacher Freedom Alliance posted on X. "And they bankroll these so-called ‘protests’ with your tax dollars." Erika Donalds, America First Policy Institute's chair of education opportunity, told Fox News Digital that the statement made by the union "tells you everything about the goals of today’s teachers unions." "They’re harassing retailers and pushing radical politics instead of doing the job they’re paid to do: advocate for the best education for our nation’s children. While kids are falling behind in reading and math, union leaders are staging protests over immigration enforcement. They don’t speak for teachers, they don’t serve students, and at this point they barely even pretend to care about education."
What we know about calls for a general strike over ICE
January 28, 2026 // The National Shutdown website lists local and national partners including the Defend Immigrant Families Campaign, the Council on American–Islamic Relations (CAIR), the North Carolina Poor People's Campaign, the LA Tenants Union, and multiple student organizations at the University of Minnesota, while large activist groups like CodePink have also pledged to join. Several actors and other celebrities have joined in and called for the public to participate in the strike, including The Last of Us actor Pedro Pascal, Hacks’s Hannah Einbinder, Edward Norton, and Oscar-winner Jamie Lee Curtis.