Despite negotiations throughout the week, Chicago Public Schools and the Chicago Teachers Union have been unable to come to an agreement on reopening classrooms for in-person instruction.
WBEZ Radio reports that negotiations are continuing Friday, which is a scheduled day off for students.
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot and district officials have expressed frustration with the talks and characterized the union as unwilling to respond to their proposals.
“Let me emphasize that time is running out,” Lightfoot says. “We need our kids back in school. We need our parents to have that option.”
The union contends that the district has refused for months to bargain over reopening.
Members of the teachers union have said they will not report to buildings until there is an agreement. They have been defying orders to return since Jan. 25, when they were supposed to return to prepare for elementary school classes to resume.
Lightfoot’s only option for retaliation would be to block them from teaching remotely. If that happens, the union has threatened to strike.
The union wants a phased-in reopening linked to vaccines. It also wants all staff with a medically compromised relative in their household to be able to stay remote. The district wants to allow staff to work from home The school district wants to allow staff to work from home only if they have a medical condition or if they are primary caregivers for a relative with a medical condition.
