Will CTU Address Huge Sub Problems?
By Jim Vail
While the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) runs around town throwing hundreds of thousands of dollars at candidates running for office, a huge problem concerning getting substitute teachers in the schools has not been addressed in the legislature.
People I talk to are still scratching their heads about why the CTU spent upwards of half a million dollars (some are saying to check out the IL Board of Elections site because it's far greater) to elect union employee Brandon Johnson as a Cook Country Board commissioner?
The Cook County is not overseeing the schools - that's the state and the mayor's office that determines the budget.
The CTU has huge budget problems that forced it to eliminate two field rep positions - not revealed at the House of Delegates meeting in June when the delegates voted in favor of the budget. However, the field reps showed solidarity and banded together to save the two positions.
Some could say the union has been reckless as it digs deeper into the political mine field, while teachers' woes continue to mount.
One very big concern for teachers all over the city is the problem of getting substitute teachers. Many classes such as bilingual, special ed, music, art, etc. have to be cancelled because there are no subs.
Why is this?
One big reason that an executive board member said he would address in the upcoming bargaining for a new contract is that teachers cannot bank their sick days. In other words, once teachers have banked 40 sick days, they can no longer use them to cash out after retirement or leaving the system, forcing teachers to 'use them or lose them.'
Also, teachers must use their three personal days during the school year, or again, lose them.
A remarkable grievance was filed by Susan Zupan from Taylor Elementary School on the South Side a couple years ago about all the missed preps teachers have because of the lack of subs. The grievance was finally settled and money was made available to the school.
While the CTU publicized this victory, the real story behind it hasn't been told. Zupan told me and others that she went through hell to file the grievance as she battled her principal. Chicago Public Schools (CPS) did everything to not honor it - although the money did come.
According to the contract, teachers are owed pay when they miss their prep period to prepare for classes. However, Zupan said the last contract took out language to allow such a grievance to be filed again.
The state just passed a new law to address teacher and substitute shortage throughout the state. Now people with just an associate's degree or 60 college credit hours can sub (CTU said this will especially be helpful for the PSRP's who can now sub if they lost their jobs) and retired teachers can sub 120 days instead of 100.
But not in Chicago!
The state pension law is written so that Chicago retired teachers still can only sub 100 days - not 120 days like the rest of the state.
Just like Chicago is the ONLY city in Illinois that has an unelected school board comprised of members appointed by the corporate mayor to pass criminal budgets like this latest one that gives more money to white and wealthy communities at the expense of the black and Hispanic schools and further bankrupt the system by building new schools where the surrounding schools are under-enrolled and the student population continues to drop. Well, it actually mirrors the city's overall strategy to build high-priced condos with tax dollars (TIFs) while destroying affordable housing to kick the working class low income people out.
So why isn't the CTU addressing this sub problem for retired teachers and sponsoring a bill?
I sent an email to the CTU political dept. and I am awaiting an answer.
The Chicago Teachers Pension Fund (CTPF) trustee Bernie Eshoo said they are absolutely in favor of increasing the days for day-to-day subs in the city. She said the CTU should be working on insisting that CPS hire reassigned teachers. She said a big problem is that TAT (Temporary Assigned Teachers) positions are being filled by subs because it is cheaper for the school.
Another problem for retired teachers subbing in Chicago is the 100 day penalty, which Eshoo said is very punitive. She said some teachers who only subbed one day over the allowed 100 days owe the pension board thousands of dollars, which would further deter our valuable retired teachers from subbing. The trustees have repeatedly questioned how this can be fixed in the legislature.
By Jim Vail
While the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) runs around town throwing hundreds of thousands of dollars at candidates running for office, a huge problem concerning getting substitute teachers in the schools has not been addressed in the legislature.
People I talk to are still scratching their heads about why the CTU spent upwards of half a million dollars (some are saying to check out the IL Board of Elections site because it's far greater) to elect union employee Brandon Johnson as a Cook Country Board commissioner?
The Cook County is not overseeing the schools - that's the state and the mayor's office that determines the budget.
The CTU has huge budget problems that forced it to eliminate two field rep positions - not revealed at the House of Delegates meeting in June when the delegates voted in favor of the budget. However, the field reps showed solidarity and banded together to save the two positions.
Some could say the union has been reckless as it digs deeper into the political mine field, while teachers' woes continue to mount.
One very big concern for teachers all over the city is the problem of getting substitute teachers. Many classes such as bilingual, special ed, music, art, etc. have to be cancelled because there are no subs.
Why is this?
One big reason that an executive board member said he would address in the upcoming bargaining for a new contract is that teachers cannot bank their sick days. In other words, once teachers have banked 40 sick days, they can no longer use them to cash out after retirement or leaving the system, forcing teachers to 'use them or lose them.'
Also, teachers must use their three personal days during the school year, or again, lose them.
A remarkable grievance was filed by Susan Zupan from Taylor Elementary School on the South Side a couple years ago about all the missed preps teachers have because of the lack of subs. The grievance was finally settled and money was made available to the school.
While the CTU publicized this victory, the real story behind it hasn't been told. Zupan told me and others that she went through hell to file the grievance as she battled her principal. Chicago Public Schools (CPS) did everything to not honor it - although the money did come.
According to the contract, teachers are owed pay when they miss their prep period to prepare for classes. However, Zupan said the last contract took out language to allow such a grievance to be filed again.
The state just passed a new law to address teacher and substitute shortage throughout the state. Now people with just an associate's degree or 60 college credit hours can sub (CTU said this will especially be helpful for the PSRP's who can now sub if they lost their jobs) and retired teachers can sub 120 days instead of 100.
But not in Chicago!
The state pension law is written so that Chicago retired teachers still can only sub 100 days - not 120 days like the rest of the state.
Just like Chicago is the ONLY city in Illinois that has an unelected school board comprised of members appointed by the corporate mayor to pass criminal budgets like this latest one that gives more money to white and wealthy communities at the expense of the black and Hispanic schools and further bankrupt the system by building new schools where the surrounding schools are under-enrolled and the student population continues to drop. Well, it actually mirrors the city's overall strategy to build high-priced condos with tax dollars (TIFs) while destroying affordable housing to kick the working class low income people out.
So why isn't the CTU addressing this sub problem for retired teachers and sponsoring a bill?
I sent an email to the CTU political dept. and I am awaiting an answer.
The Chicago Teachers Pension Fund (CTPF) trustee Bernie Eshoo said they are absolutely in favor of increasing the days for day-to-day subs in the city. She said the CTU should be working on insisting that CPS hire reassigned teachers. She said a big problem is that TAT (Temporary Assigned Teachers) positions are being filled by subs because it is cheaper for the school.
Another problem for retired teachers subbing in Chicago is the 100 day penalty, which Eshoo said is very punitive. She said some teachers who only subbed one day over the allowed 100 days owe the pension board thousands of dollars, which would further deter our valuable retired teachers from subbing. The trustees have repeatedly questioned how this can be fixed in the legislature.
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