A letter from an alderman to Illinois state officers exposes the extent to which faculty board members are allegedly concerned in ongoing trainer negotiations and requires an investigation and opinion on potential authorized and moral violations that outcome.
Ald. Gilbert Villegas, 36, hand-delivered his message Thursday to Attorney General Kwame Raoul and Dr. Tony Sanders, state superintendent of training.
“Various media retailers have printed disturbing reviews in regards to the conduct of some workers members related to Chicago Public Schools, which can contain unfair labor practices and breaches of fiduciary duties,” Villegas wrote.
CTU’s contract expired in June and bargaining has been ongoing for months, intensifying lately when each side made public their frustrations with the negotiations. CTU members say Donald J. Trump’s election provides urgency because the nation’s new chief guarantees to dismantle the Department of Education and spearhead the most important deportation efforts in U.S. historical past.
Meanwhile, some aldermen — like Villegas — have questioned the college board’s alignment with Mayor Brandon Johnson and the highly effective lecturers union that helped him come to energy. The mayor is a former trainer and CTU organizer.
“We have conflicts of curiosity in every single place,” Villegas mentioned in an interview with the Tribune. “I need to make it possible for lecturers have a good contract, however I additionally need to make it possible for taxpayers are protected as nicely. I do not assume the second half is being considered.”
The letter highlights the significance of moral governance throughout the CPS. Villegas suggests the Chicago lecturers union and board members are “sidelining out” the district’s chief of workers, Pedro Martinez, in collective bargaining negotiations. Under the Illinois School Code, Martinez has unique statutory authority to barter collective bargaining agreements, Villegas wrote.
Villegas referred to as the board’s discussions about early contract negotiations “troubling.” The board’s position, he mentioned, is to “wait till the CEO of CPS and his workers have agreed to a contract … after which the board should approve the contract” after being notified.
In a social media publish, the CTU mentioned the board didn’t “collude” with the union throughout contract negotiations. The CTU outlined the letter as “an absurd and legally inconsistent accusation”.
“There just isn’t a company in America through which the CEO can function independently of the board of administrators or a faculty district in America through which a superintendent can override the college board,” the CTU wrote.
Ultimately, the CEO and the board of administrators are alleged to have a collaborative relationship. The CEO reviews to the board, which research the wants of scholars and the group. Per district board guidelines, Martinez negotiates all collective bargaining agreements on behalf of the board and submits tentative agreements to the board for adoption and approval.
But the board and CEO have been at odds for months over a monetary dispute that led to the resignation of all seven members in early October. Johnson appointed a brand new board just a few days later.
The union and district are transferring nearer to a decision on the bargaining desk, each union and district officers mentioned Thursday. But the letter means that the strains between the distinct Board of Education and the CTU are blurring murkyly.
Beyond considerations about exceeding the CEO’s authority, Villegas wrote about how some board members collaborating within the negotiations have a direct connection to the CTU, “presenting a transparent battle between the pursuits of the CPS and the pursuits of the CTU”.
Villegas cited a 1984 Illinois Court of Appeals case between the Niles Township Board of Education and the Cook County Regional Board of School Trustees that he mentioned underlined the invalidity of board selections when conflicts of curiosity.
Moving ahead, Villegas has directed the 2 Illinois state officers and recipients of the letter to research whether or not the involvement of a number of faculty board members in CTU collective bargaining issues constitutes a violation of labor practices and to supply an opinion about how the district or the general public can reply.
Raoul mentioned he would overview the letter and phone Villegas. Sanders didn’t instantly reply when requested for remark.
nsalzman@chicagotribune.com
