88% of Chicago teachers vote in favor of strike

Aamer Madhani | USA TODAY

CHICAGO — Teachers in the nation's third largest school system are inching toward a possible strike early next year, as Chicago Teachers Union members have voted overwhelmingly in favor of authorizing a work stoppage if union leaders and school officials are unable to soon broker a new contract, union leaders said Monday.

The union, which has been without a contract since June, said 88% of members marked yes to authorize leaders to call a strike. State law requires 75% of members to approve a strike for leaders to move forward with a work stoppage.

Talks between the union and Chicago Public Schools officials have been at loggerheads for months. The school system and union had appeared close to a one-year deal in June, but talks fell apart over differences in the teacher evaluation system. Talks resumed in August over a multi-year deal, but union officials say there has been little progress.

The union is pushing for more school programs, smaller class sizes, a 3% salary increase, and pay for snow days. The school system, meanwhile, is looking for teachers to take a pay cut and pay more in health care premiums.

The school budget is facing a roughly $500 million shortfall. Mayor Rahm Emanuel and schools CEO Forrest Claypool have warned that job cuts at the city's schools could be coming early next year unless state lawmakers take action with an aid package for the cash-strapped school system. The union includes 27,000 members.

"Rahm, Forrest Claypool — Listen to what teachers and educators are trying to tell you: do not cut the schools anymore, do not make the layoffs that you have threatened; instead, respect educators and give us the tools we need to do our jobs," said Jesse Sharkey, the union's vice president.

A strike would be another headache for the embattled Emanuel, who has faced calls for his resignation in recent weeks following the release of disturbing police video that shows a police officer fatally shooting Laquan McDonald, 17, on a city street last year. The mayor also angered many in the African-American community in 2012 when he authorized the closure of 50 schools with low enrollment in predominantly black neighborhoods as he struggled to deal with budget difficulties.

The school system was also in the national spotlight in October when Barbara Byrd-Bennett, the former chief executive picked by Emanuel to run the school system, pleaded guilty in federal court to her part in a scheme to steer $23 million in contracts to her former employer.

The union filed an unfair labor practice complaint last week with the state's educational labor relations board, demanding that talks proceed to a fact-finding phase in the negotiations. State law requires a 105-day waiting period from when fact-finding begins before a strike can take place.

Claypool reiterated the Emanuel administration's call for teachers to put their energy into pressuring state lawmakers in Springfield to re-calibrate how the state funds public school. Chicago has about 20% of Illinois' students but only gets about 15% of state education funding.

"So rather than strike, we ask that the Chicago Teachers Union join us to fight for our shared goal of equal education funding from Springfield for Chicago’s children," Claypool said. "We will continue to negotiate in good faith with the CTU leadership to reach a fair, multi-year agreement that protects teachers, their jobs and ensures our students’ success.”

There was a seven-day teachers strike under Emanuel's watch in 2012. That strike marked the first teachers work stoppage in Chicago in 25 years.