Posts tagged Chicago
Parents suing Chicago Teachers Union over COVID-19 strike
March 30, 2024 // Teacher strikes are illegal in eight of the 10 largest school districts in the nation, with Chicago being one of the two districts where strikes are allowed. Los Angeles Unified School District is the other, according to the Illinois Policy Institute. A spokesman from the Hughes and Suhr LLC law firm said in Chicago Public Schools, 76% of all students are classified as low-income. They said teachers earn nearly twice the average income of the families they serve and the timing and length of the strike was particularly egregious. Kugler said, in his opinion, CTU deserves punitive consequences. Before he left his position, Kugler was employed by the CTU for over 10 years, where he was part of the union while strike preparation was happening. He said there’s a process to strike.
CTU president suggests new teacher contract could cost taxpayers $50 billion
March 7, 2024 // The Chicago Teachers Union is preparing for collective bargaining talks with the city, and the union's president suggested the new terms would cost taxpayers $50 billion. “We are asking you to give us an opportunity to tell our story. It will cost $50 billion, and three cent,” CTU President Stacy Davis Gates said Tuesday at the City Club of Chicago this week, setting the stage for upcoming negotiations with the city. "And so what? That's audacity."
CHICAGO TEACHERS UNION IGNORES OWN MANDATE FOR FINANCIAL TRANSPARENCY
February 26, 2024 // And it’s certainly not good legacy-building for Davis Gates, whose first year as union president has been tainted by deficit spending, decreased spending on members, personally cheating Indiana schools out of taxes owed to them and sending her son to a private school while denying that choice to low-income families. CTU’s bylaws require publication of an annual audit of finances, but there’s been no sign of an audit for at least four years CTU’s internal rules are clear: an annual audit must be performed and published each year.
REI SoHo workers unionized in 2022, but still don’t have a contract. This play tells their story
February 21, 2024 // Neill first put on the play, called Foot Wears House, for her coworkers and fellow union members, through a reading at RWDSU’s office. Now, it will be open to the public with a reading at Hudson Park Library on February 24, once again starring members of the REI Soho union. The reading is supported by Working Theater, which is focused on stories for and about working people, and is free to the public, with the option for donations to the REI Union Hardship Fund.
Commentary: For Teachers’ Unions, Strikes Are the New Normal
February 19, 2024 // Meanwhile, students trapped in blue states – or blue cities – effectively run by teachers’ union political power, remained hostages to the demands of even more funding, hazard pay, increased “teacher work periods,” etc. In many cases, the demands even included political concessions like guaranteed housing and expanding Medicare for All. Don’t forget: Some teachers’ unions had to issue reminders for teachers not to post vacation pictures while the schools were closed. Because let’s call a spade a spade: The teachers’ unions used the COVID pandemic as history’s largest and longest strike, during which they tried to exact concessions they would have never achieved at a normal negotiating table.
Journalists turn to picket lines as the news business ails
February 16, 2024 // At the L.A. Times, where Schleuss got his start as a labor activist, owner Soon-Shiong made deep cuts last June and again last month, saying he is losing tens of millions of dollars a year on the paper. He says the union's refusal to give him greater leeway in making job cuts in January forced him to lay off more journalists. He had offered buyouts in exchange for relaxing protections by seniority. The union instead went out on strike.
Switching from tipped to minimum wage would be ‘catastrophic,’ restauranter says
February 7, 2024 // While some are advocating for tipped workers to get the minimum wage with tips on top, a legislator who also owns restaurants says such a move would be devastating to the economy. Advocates from the group One Fair Wage organized a rally outside of the Illinois statehouse Tuesday as legislators were returning.
The Onion Union Gets Strike Authorization, Accuses G/O Media Of Bad Faith Bargaining Through “Threatening And Intimidating Behavior”
February 5, 2024 // In addition to pay increases, the Onion Union is seeking contractual protections in the event that the company is sold. This comes after the union hit back at G/O Media management after the closure of Jezebel in November, writing in a statement at the time, “our hostile and incompetent management made no effort to work with the union to find a less cruel alternative arrangement…” The union is also seeking improved severance given the ongoing layoffs, as well as basic protections against AI — another area in which employees throughout the company are speaking from experience, given G/O Media previously published AI-generated articles on several of its sites, much to the ire of the staff.
University of Chicago Medical Center lays off 180 employees
February 4, 2024 // With roughly 13,000 employees, the University of Chicago Medical Center let go of less than 2% of their staff on Thursday.
Chicago Teachers Union Ready to Strike at Instituto Schools
January 25, 2024 //