Hey Hey Ho Ho Inflatable Rats Have Got To Go

Jabbo Special Edition:
Teacher's Strike Day 3

Yesterday, School Board President David Vitale promised to reach an agreement with the CTU. Union President Karen Lewis came out of the meeting accusing Vitale of feckless brigandry (my words, not hers, she went to Chicago public schools). The Union and the School Board meet again today. The Board will present a "comprehensive proposal" (AP words, not mine) to which the the Union will return a written response. Or some shenanigans like that. The strike continues.

Dramatis Personae
Because I like to know what the people look like. Imagine these guys sitting across a table from one another, screaming.

CTU President Karen Lewis

School Board President David Vitale

Mayor Rahm Emanuel

The Strike Spreads!
The school custodian union (I don't know the official name) has promised to strike in support of the CTU and several suburban school districts in the Chicago area are facing strikes as well.

In the Lake Forest school district, where teachers average $106 thousand a year, teachers are striking because they want more pay, better benefits, and because union leaders and school board members can't agree on which dates to meet. Lake Forest pictured below: notice the difference in landscape and attire.

Teachers in North Shore are striking because they have been working without contracts since the beginning of the school year.

Prairie Grove teachers planned a walk out on Friday, but have agreed to stay in their classrooms until negotiations have progressed.

Teachers at Argo High School in Summit are threatening to go on strike by the end of the month. Here's the situation. Currently, teachers on the verge of retirement get a 6% raise each year to boost their retirement income. The district wants to stop that practice. The union there accuses the district of trying to roll back previous gains made by collective bargaining. Also, they're upset about health insurance.

Also on the verge of a strike, teachers in Evergreen Park are upset about the $16 million reserve fund the district has amassed. The district wants to use the money for renovations to schools, technology improvements in the classroom, and unforeseen emergencies. The teachers want to use the money for raises.

Back in Chicago, union members are trying to gain more parent support by advertising the large class sizes and poor air conditioning of many schools. The teachers, they say, are striking to create better learning environments for their children. I'm not politically or mechanically savvy, so I'm not sure how performance based evaluations affect room temperature, but maybe if they use the evaluations in the winter, they can cut down on heating costs. Just a thought.

A significant difference exists between strikes in the urban district and strikes in the suburban districts. Urban districts have seen a steady decrease in enrollment, due to charter schools, drop outs, and moves. This decrease has led to a decrease in funding (schools get paid per kid per day) and to more classroom space than children to fill it and, therefore, to more school closings. The key issue in the urban district is job security. In the suburbs, school officials get to spoon the sweet cream from teacher milk pail. They get the best teachers and more applications than they have open positions. Weeding out weak performers by performance evaluation doesn't frighten anyone. In the suburbs, the teachers want more money.

The Parting Shot
Why are we striking, June? Where are my pills?

(These are all AP pictures from news sites.)