(Bloomberg) — Chicago schools have canceled instruction for Wednesday after the teachers’ union voted to shift to remote learning, escalating a clash with city officials.
The result of an electronic citywide ballot showed 73% of the members of the Chicago Teachers Union were in favor of the action, according to its posts on Twitter. Mayor Lori Lightfoot wanted to keep the U.S.’s third-largest district open amid nationwide staffing shortages as Covid-19 cases surge. City officials have called the step illegal and responded by calling off classes altogether for a day.
The CTU is demanding additional mitigation like more testing to prevent the spread of the disease given the omicron variant has pushed case numbers to a record. The district has said it is taking additional steps to keep students and staff safe.
The union said remote teaching will end when the current “surge in cases substantially subsides” or when the mayor signs an agreement “establishing conditions for return that are voted on and approved” by the union’s house of delegates.
“The worst thing that we can do is shut the entire system down,” Lightfoot said during an unrelated press conference on Tuesday, adding that the “best place, the safest place for our children to be, is in a classroom everyday.”
Like New York Mayor Eric Adams, Lightfoot has pushed to keep the city’s schools open. School closings are accelerating in other parts of the U.S. Large districts around Atlanta, Detroit and Prince George’s County in Maryland are adopting remote instruction. At least 3,229 schools closed in the first week of January, according to Burbio, which tracks closings.
The district plans to “double down” on protection strategies including vaccination, testing, contact tracing, universal masking, social distancing, hand hygiene, cleaning and air quality. It also will switch classrooms or schools to remote if needed to prevent spread. The school district’s mass testing plan, however, has hit some snags with most of its at home tests unable to provide valid results.
Chicago Public Schools Chief Executive Officer Pedro Martinez said prior to the vote that instruction would be canceled on Wednesday but school buildings will be open in the event of a union “walk out.”
He said he’s been “frustrated” by misinformation that’s fueled anxiety among parents and staff that the schools are not safe when data shows otherwise. “The children are safe and safer in schools, when we look at Covid cases in the schools versus the community,” Martinez said during a press conference.
‘Illegal’ Action
The district is committed to reaching an agreement with the CTU but if union members vote to teach remotely, next steps for parents will be provided on Wednesday, Martinez said.
A vote not to report to buildings would be an “illegal work action,” the district said in an emailed statement on Tuesday.
“A vote to stop reporting to work would cause profound harm to children’s learning and health and be another damaging blow to the well being of our students and their families,” according to the statement.
The fight marks the latest in a series of conflicts between the union and Chicago Public Schools and the mayor. In late 2019, the union held its longest strike since 1987 to demand higher pay as well as more nurses and social workers in schools. After the winter break in early 2021, the union’s actions led to a delayed and phased-in return to school.
“What we need is what we are going to fight for,” Stacy Davis Gates, the union’s vice president, said during a press conference outside a school on Monday. She said Lightfoot and the district need to do more. “We are going to fight for the mitigations.”
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