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Faced with a Monday deadline, negotiators plan to meet through the weekend to avoid the first Chicago teachers strike in 25 years.
The Chicago Teachers Union, representing nearly 30,000 public school teachers and staff, have threatened to walk off the job starting at 12:01 a.m. on Monday if a deal is not reached. As many as 400,000 students from 675 schools will be affected.
Teachers and school officials have been locked in contract talks since last year and still disagree on wages, health benefits and job security.
Chicago School Board president David Vitale sat in on contract talks for the first time Thursday and said they are close to reaching a deal.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel, former White House chief of staff to President Barack Obama, rushed back from the National Democratic Convention to monitor talks. Emanuel said progress was being made to help avoid a strike. "Both parties have been at the table consistently and we're making steady, good progress," Emanuel told NBC Chicago in Charlotte.
View NBCChicago.com's story on looming strike deadline
The Chicago Teachers Union doesn't necessarily agree. The union on Wednesday filed unfair labor practice charges against Chicago Public Schools, accusing the district of canceling some promised longevity pay hikes and sick leave benefits.
"What they are proposing is still the 2 percent cost-of-living raise, but not the raises that we have had in our contract," said Karen Lewis, president of the Chicago Teachers Union.
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“We are tired of being bullied, belittled and betrayed. We have done everything asked of us and we continue to be vilified and treated with disrespect,” she said.
The school district is making plans too. Schools chief Jean-Claude Brizard said 144 schools will remain open for half-day programs from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in the event of a strike.
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“If the leadership of the CTU chooses to strike, no one will be hurt more than our students," Brizard said in a statement, "and we are prepared to offer a safety net for families who are not able to access alternative options for their students."
The district plans to rely on non-union employees to take care of students, and though no traditional classroom instruction will be offered, classroom assistants, bus aids and principals will show up Monday to direct other activities, according to district officials.
NBC News' Sevil Omer and NBCChicago.com contributed to this report.
Have an education-related story? Contact NBC News's Sevil Omer at sevil.omer@msnbc.com
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Leave a Comment:
The people calling for a strike as school starts are the same ones giving interviews and saying, "It's for the kids."
If it was "For the Kids" the teachers wouldnt even consider striking. Teachers dont get paid well, this is something they all know before they become teachers. These teachers and their unions need to swallow their greed and go back to work teaching the kids because really thats the job they signed up for. They should be thankful to have a job and a paycheck right now and instead of demanding more be thankful for what they have.
I'm a teacher and you can bet that the news media will soft-peddle this story because it looks bad for the union goons and for the Dems. who ehlp them pick our pockets. Those fat lazy unionistas at the Dem. convention are exactly the problem, look at the heiffer at the helm of the CTA.
What a nasty, mean-spirited comment, wazoo. You're a teacher? Ri-i-ii-gh--t. I call BS. And what does it matter what size the president of the CTU is?
delilah52
Please the "Nasty, mean-spirited comment"... Are you a teacher there? I have known of many times when the employees (in this case teachers) were willing to settle on a contract but the Unions would not allow them to.
And Yes these are the same Unions that the Dem have all ready picked your pocket and mine to pay them off (Don't believe me.. Take a look at the UAW in the GM bailout)
And what gives with this "Mayor Rahm Emanuel... Rushing back from the Dem Convention" to monitor talks. Emanuel said progress was being made to help avoid a strike.
This is not like a freak storm that popped up without warning... "Teachers and school officials have been locked in contract talks since last year and still disagree on wages, health benefits and job security."
More Face time for a failed Democrat "Saying, Look at Me, HERE I COME TO SAVE THE DAY.
Talk about a lop-sided deal. Teachers are given credit for the year's they attend collage as "worked" years for retirement. There is no other industry around that gives school training years as worked credit for retirement. Not even the VA with all there liberal benefits gives that for retirement.
The Union Bosses have one thing in mind. Them First!! Stick it to everyone else, just as long as they get theirs.
It's time that the teachers unions, (NEA) comes under public control, and out of the union bosses. Those folks only care about one thing, Their bank account. The NEA,REA , CTU & the rest. Talk about the children. But that is simply a tool for there purpose. "The end justifies the means"!
Our public schools are a mess. They rank 27th in the world. Yet have the highest per ca pita income in all the world. Yet we hear the same worn out story. They need more money. No they need to get back to basic. Get rid of the incompetent teachers, the lazy ones, those that are only looking for a pay check, benefits, & retirement package. Get rid of the heavy top. Why do schools have to have assistants to the assistance's. Why do principals have to have assistant principles? What are the assistant to the assistant for?
Wazoo--ABSOLUTELY! What part of 'they have a job' do the teachers not get? Guess what? The 'former' taxpayers who pay their salaries do NOT, for a lot of them. If the money isn't there, it should NOT be just the taxpayers who take the hit to help solve the financial crises the district is facing.
And guess what, Rahm. MAYBE if Chicago were not a SANCTUALRY CITY, A) the cost per student would go down as fewer translators are needed, B) the number of taxpaying CITIZENS required per student to cover the costs of the schools would go down.
My town in CENTRAL MO has one out of 6 students who DO NOT speak Enlish, and there is NO business in town that can get green cards, so one sixth of our total budget is going to educate the kids who should not even BE here. And that is $5,600,000 DOLLARS that could be spent in a poor economy to educate the kids whose parents PAY the taxes.
Dave--AMEN on too many chiefs in administration!
When I was in school back in the dark ages ( ;) ) our HS had 5 grades and 1750 students, with ONE principal, and 2 guidance counselors (who were, BTW, USELESS!) Now we have 1000 students (3 grades) at the senior high and the principal has FOUR assistants and there are 3 guidance counselors (who are BTW, USELESS) and co-ordinators out the wazoo.
Funny how they aren't graduating as high a percentage as they did in my day, even tho they can shuffle the 'problem kids' off to our 'alternative HS'. (GET your GED right here folks, before you even turn 18!)
Agreed. It's not the teachers, per se...
It's the levels of bureacracy (paid positions) in school districts that have no "teaching" interraction with students!
It's the disinterested parents who do not hold their children to a standard of doing homework!
It's the education system that socially promotes illiterate students!
It's an education system/parents that label their children as "SPED", when what they really need (in may cases) is a kick in the ass, and a command to behave or be suspended! It's the 90/10 rule: How can a teacher teach, when they spend 90% of their time on the classroom management of 10% of the students (disruptive)?!
The dismal tide..
RICO
Mayor Rahm "Never let a crisis go to waste" Emanuel was too busy at the DNC Convention to be bothered with this....His plan from the beginning was to cave in at the last minute to the Union...Taxpayers be damned, Unions claim victory and feel empowered.......He paid his homage to P.Obama in NC and will be first in line for Federal Dollars...Maybe some of the unspent Stimulus Money set aside for just such a crisis.....
If it is for the kids then why didn't they strike back in June instead of the start of the school year, what a bunch of bull.
I say fire the lot and replace them with all of the young teachers coming out of collage. All these Union thugs are a complete waste of space, they all need to go.
Sorry, apparently you don't understand the term 'strike'....ooh, let's close the plant on the weekend, that'll show 'em.
By the way, my daughter, union thug that she is, has just started her second year teaching. It's no walk in the park, despite what you think. And, no, she is not getting rich!
400,000 students / 30,000 teachers....That is lessthan
400,000 students / 30,000 teachers...That is less than 14 students per teacher... Time to make some cuts.
Pegn--Sorry, but apparently YOU don't understand the term "for the kids".
And By the way, MY daughter, union SLAVE that she was forced to be, QUIT teaching after 7 years, largely because she was tired of the tenured teachers who no longer felt the need to work hard.
She went back and got her MBA.
Teaching is NOT a 'walk in the park.' But your daughter SHOULD have known that before she took the job. What teaching is (or should be) is an opportunity to work with bright minds to improve them, and a nice environment to do it, with LIBERAL hours and summers off. A teaching job is PERFECT for a parent, as their schedule is about the same as their kids' are.
And THAT is a perk that is invaluable.
But as for Chicago, WHERE do the teachers's union reps think the city is supposed to GET the money to meet their demands? Do they NOT understand that we are in a recession? That former taxpayers are out of WORK? That businesses are going belly up?
EVIDENTLY teachers are SO committed to those kids that they think EACH ONE of them should have to pay for their whole lives for the DEBT incurred to BORROW money that Chicago has No way to pay back, just to maintain the contract the districe was blackmailed into the LAST time it was up for negotiation.
Fire them all and hire replacements, there are many new young teachers who would love to have the job..screw these union thugs
They should offer more practical courses: Ebonics, Drive-By-Shooting, Crack 101, Bling, Who's Your Daddy, Government Cheese, Food Stamps, PlayingTthe-Race-Card. . .
Why teach what they already know? Classes should be offered in Responsibility 101, Marriage Before Baby Carriage, The Govt Owes You Nuthin! and It's Called A Job.
Actually my parents, first generation Italians born of poor immigrants who came to this country and were given nothing but the opportunity to work, taught me all the above classes at home. They made sure I went to college.
Somehow, it all got bassackwards on what many kids are taught today, no matter what color they are.
My husband worked 27 years, with illnesses of all types,but still went to work and worked hard and did whatever they told him. He retired not because he wanted to but because the boss was illegally doing sneaky things to make older people retire. They hired a young person and he worked only 3 days before quitting and saying he did not want to work that hard!!!!!!!!!!!
The should also teach a class on the timeless political cronyism in Chicagostan and it's effect on not only the quality of schools but quality of life!If they really wanted to be fair to the kids and citizens,they would pass a law precluding dimocrap from holding office there for 50 years.That's about how long it would take to squeeze out all the deadwood and corruption on Chicagostan.
Fire them all and hire non-union replacements. They want raises when money is non-existent. Timing on this had to be set by unions to force their hand. They think schools will stop until they get their way. Wrong. Just makes ones opinion of unions even less. All these teachers are well paid and it would not be hard to bring in enough non union teachers to fill the vacancies. Remember the traffic controllers strike, they got fired and replaced. Remember the garbage union strike, all new peoples.
Kick the unions out now is the time. Not only will save the new teachers having to pay union dues, but will save the citys portion of the dues.
you will know what side your sellout mayor takes here shortly
You beat me to it Mike. Rahm "Never let a good crisis go to waste" Emmanual. will bow to the extortionists in the teachers union in a way to make him look like a hero amongst his base. ( Hard core socialists) and give a speech to celebrate the hard work of the unions and administration. Typical liberal tactics of positioning yourself for the press conference and photo-op. Why wasn't this settled before kids went back to school this fall? Because it would have been much harder to hold the children hostage! Unions are only concerned about the students (s) Riiiiight!
Why not just hire non union teachers?
I know, I know.
The taxpayers come last.
note the very last paragraph of this article, "they will rely on non union employees to take care of the students"
Good ole Rahm, he will stick it to the taxpayers rather than stand up to the union goons. It's all for the kids is getting old. Look at the product and tell me where the problem is. Tenure?
In the real world (non-gov) people work or lose their job. When they want more money and the company cannot afford it they look elsewhere. If they are good enough they succeed. Why are teachers and gov workers immune from reality. They will tell the boss either pony up or we support your opponent. Hope they shut the whole city down.
See which teachers cross the picket line and keep them on the payroll and fire the rest. Replace the fired teachers with teachers who are looking for a job.
I wish the teachers would think about the kids. I think it's sad. If I lived in Chicago, I would offer to substitute teach. I'm working for a teacher's degree in Texas. I won't be joing any unions, as I have worked for school districts before and I have seen the greed that comes from unions. The unions get the teachers thinking more about themselves and unfortunately the students suffer because the teachers stop caring. So sad!
rah: You say that until you start paying back your student loans and try to pay all your bills, eat and feed your family. Then you will wondering how to make a better salary where you can afford Top Ramen for dinner. Yes, the students are important, but you have to be able to pay for the gas to get there and your own teaching supplies as well as transportation. Not to mention, since you have never lived in Chicago, buy a flack jacket, you will need it.
Shelly - Not sure I understand what your counterpoint was, but teachers at Chicago's Catholic and other parochial schools also have bils to pay, yet they are non-union and get better academic results from their students. It's not all suburbia - many of them are in equally rough neighborhoods.
Rah - If your heart tells you to go, you go, and do well. The flack jacket's not entirely a bad idea, though.
Oh, and because the parochial teachers focus on developing the whole person, Catholic schools usually kick butt in football, too. Had to get that dig in.
Wage increases should be attached to job performance. Teachers at failing schools should not be given a wage increase.
Not knowing what the issue is regarding Health Benefits, I think government employees should have the same kind of health coverage as our "esteemed" members of congress.
Job security is a non-starter. Nobody should be comfortable enough that they don't fear being fired for incompetence and/or malfeasance.
I like the idea of firing them and replacing them with recent college graduates.
Mr Koatz,
Wage increases should be attached to job performance
Lets start with congress !
This is my $0.02 and my take on things.
I teach here in Oklahoma. I have two degrees, one in chemistry, and another in chemical engineering. I am entering my fifteenth year in the classroom and I still have yet to make $40 K per year. I could easily triple my salary. And yes, Chemical Engineers DO make that kind of money.
Frankly, the vast majority of the folks in this country have never been on the other side of the lectern in a public school.
Today, I see so many kids that do not give a damn about their education or their futures,
and yet public school teachers are supposed to be able to teach all of the kids.
Really, how many of you guys that have posted here have had to do metal detector duty at the front door of your office complex? How many have had a subordinate come up (read student) come up and say that daddy molested her last night? How many of you have had to break up an office fist fight? Or worse, one that involves multiple employees? I have seen fights involving as many as seventy students during the course of my career. If XYZ corporation had a fist fight involving that many employees, it would make the front page of the New York Times. Yet, such disturbances in the public schools go largely unnoticed.
How many of you guys have had one of your subordinates slash your car tires at work?
I have had my car tires slashed one year by an angry student, and a couple years later the windshield of my car was bashed out by another student.
And teachers are supposed to be evaluated on their thug, read THUG, teaching performance.
The teaching biz has one thing in common with most other occupations in this country.
In a free market, one will most assuredly get what one has paid for.
If society keeps on treating public school teachers like dirt, sooner or later, there will be none left in the classroom. Then the big bad teachers' unions will not have to resort to striking to improve the lot of their members.
Finally, if we, as a society, do not begin to support our teachers and tell the kiddos
and their parents that they are at school to learn; and if I were the President of the US, I would try to get the US Congress to mandate that all schools, public and private, begin teaching Chinese to their students, starting in kindergarten. That way, we, as Americans, will be ready to embrace the new world order.
And yet, tomorrow, I will go to work to help those few kids who really do want to improve their lot in life. As much as I would love to earn a salary that is commensurate with my education and skill level, there is a certain joy in seeing young human beings blossom
under one's tutelage.
Rah,
In my humble opinion, you are a very foolish man. It will only take one young lady in your career to change your mind about the teachers' union. All you need to do is to flunk one, just one, sweet young thing. And then she and her folks will go to your administrator, or the police, and say that your touched her inappropriately.
You will be called out of class and arrested for child molestation. If you are not a member of the teachers; union, you will have to find a way to provide for your own bail, and legal defense. If you manage to have 20 - 30k lying around the house (on a teachers' salary mind you) then you are good to go. If not, well then I wish you luck using the public defenders' office for your legal defense.
Fire them all and let the kids stay at home to play video games. It's not a big loss. Kids today don't learn anything in school anyway.
All of you who are bashing unions have no idea how they improve and protect the working conditions of employees. And if you've never worked in a school, you have NO idea about the "politics" and their impact on things you could not imagine. Educators are always the scapegoat expected to change the world but receive no compensation or benefits equal to the expectation. PROUD TO BE UNION
Politics is nothing but a Liar club..Created by our wonderful education system..
If these Teachers keep putting out Idiots like we have in the White House..Please with all due respect STRIKE! I am sure there are people out there with logic, reason and common sense can do a better Job..
Mmm-hmm. Yes, it all seems so very simple to the "brain trust" that we have posting here. Just fire them all and replace them with "new, young teachers." Those "new, young teachers" last an average of less than five years in the profession these days. And who can blame them? All one has to do is read the idiotic, clueless postings on this board to get an idea. If one don't know what one is talking about, one should keep quiet. Our educational system is in trouble, and it ISN'T the fault of the teachers. The simple-minded rhetoric of the brainwashed doesn't help.
Let them strike. Who cares. Maybe Chicago will be lucky and none of them will come back.
Best part time job in the world.Great pay,excellent retirement and benefits and they want to strike.Ibet this has more to do with Rham's proposal to have the teachers work an additonal 4 days per school term.Greedy basta!ds!
Why not have Jessie Jr.come in an negotiate with the unions.He could tell them to claim they are stressed out and all go on sick leave for 3 months so they too,could get paid.Any day now,I expect JJ to hold a press conference and state he is going back to college to get his PHd ! His paper will be on how to scam the public for 3 months and get away with it.Why aren't public employees(senators and Representatives) required to take a drug test.They are alway driving our country and should be test every week.