The Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) voted to defy Chicago Public Schools (CPS) reopening plans for teachers and staff over concerns about the coronavirus, the union announced on Sunday.
The teachers’ union for the third largest school district in the country decided to allow all educators to work remotely, starting on Monday, the day when staff from kindergarten through eighth grade were expected to return in person .
The CTU reported that 86 percent of the 25,000 members participated in the electronic vote on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Seventy-one percent of voting members decided to deny the district’s current plan to return to personal learning.
“So what does this mean?” read a CTU release. “It means that the vast majority of you have chosen security. CPS did everything in its power to divide us by instilling fear by threatening retaliation, but you still chose unity, solidarity and acting collectively as one. “
The Chicago Sun-Times labeled the vote “unusually close for CTU labor campaigns,” noting that 94 percent of voting members decided to strike in 2019.
Chicago County officials sent a letter to families on Sunday in response to the vote, saying the return date for teachers will be delayed until Wednesday to allow more time for negotiations and to avoid “ student learning is disturbed ‘. They noted that they hoped to reach an agreement with the union “as soon as possible” and that the return date of February 1 remains for students.
“We now agree on much more than we disagree, but our discussions are still going on and more time is needed to find a solution, ”read the letter obtained by The Hill.
The teachers’ union and CPS have had a fight about the district’s plan to have most of the faculty and staff work in person for weeks. Under the plan, staff and faculty would return Monday, with K-8 students having the opportunity to learn in person starting Feb. 1.
CPS previously instructed most of the kindergarten and special education staff will return to schools earlier this month, with students dating back to Jan. 11. But the district reported that 49 percent of those said they would return before the Jan. 11 start date, representing 19 percent of the student populations.
In their letter, the officials said that pre-K and special education staff are expected to continue to personally report to work, despite the delay for other staff. The district has already blocked remote work and has stopped paying a few dozen of these teachers who previously no longer worked in person.
The CTU has said its vote does not qualify as a strike, as teachers have pledged to continue working remotely, although the district does not allow it. The union said it would strike if no deal was reached on Wednesday and CPS is preventing K-8 teachers from working from home.
District officials and City Health Commissioner Allison Arwady have expressed confidence in CPS’s reopening plan, and the Sun-Times reported that the district has spent $ 44 million on disinfectants, PPE, air cleaners and other measures to prevent spread.
But the teachers’ union is still looking for answers to a number of questions, including whether staff with roommates with certain medical conditions can work from home and whether staff and student testing will increase.