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Press Release:

Chicago Board of Education Vote Shortchanges Students and Educators

"As teachers, we're here every day for our kids, working 50- and 60-hour weeks, coming in early and staying late, to ensure the best possible future for our kids," said Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis. "It makes no sense for the Board and the CEO to shortchange kids who need a quality teacher in every classroom while the City is giving away hundreds of millions of dollars in tax breaks to big developers and even more in profits for the big banks that wrecked our economy."
"Thirty thousand hard-working teachers negotiated a contract in 2007 and have spent every day of the last four years keeping our promise to the children of Chicago," Lewis added. "But today the Chicago Board of Education appointed by Mayor Emanuel voted to break their promise to their employees,” said Lewis.
According to a recent study by the Chicago Sun-Times, in terms of salary, CPS high school teachers rank 71st and elementary teachers rank 37th in the state. “This city did not get into this financial mess by overpaying teachers,” said Lewis.
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The Chicago Teachers Union represents 30,000 teachers and educational support personnel working in the Chicago Public Schools and, by extension, the students and families they serve. CTU, an affiliate of the American Federation of Teachers and the Illinois Federation of Teachers, is the third largest teachers local in the country and the largest local union in Illinois.