This story has been updated to include comments from district leaders.
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A neutral arbitrator recommended Chicago Public Schools and the Chicago Teachers Union agree to a new contract that includes, among other things, annual raises between 4% and 5%, 90 new librarians hired by 2029, and more family engagement coordinators.
The CTU rejected the recommendations, saying they did not tackle other union demands, such as the structure of the elementary school day, and teacher evaluations. The union’s rejection starts a countdown to a possible strike.
Martin Malin, the arbitrator, largely sided with the district in recommending holding the line on significant staffing increases for other positions — including counselors, fine arts teachers, case managers, and technology coordinators — citing the district’s precarious financial position.
In issuing his recommendations around salary increases, Malin wrote that “we do not live in typical times,” with President Donald Trump’s looming tariffs and economists predicting labor shortages. But he said it would be a “fool’s errand” to try to predict inflation and sided with CPS’s latest offer of 4% raise in the first year of the contract and 4% to 5% in subsequent years depending on inflation.
Malin also raised concerns that at least one of Trump’s executive orders, aimed at “ending radical indoctrination” in schools, could be a “potential threat” to CPS’s federal funding.
CPS CEO Pedro Martinez said the report echoed what district leaders have said about the financial limitations CPS faces and the need for restraint and flexibility in staffing. He said he is disappointed the CTU rejected what he called “a very thoughtful and thorough analysis.” But he and other officials voiced hope that the report would nevertheless spur momentum at the bargaining table.
“This report presents an opportunity for progress in our ongoing negotiations with the CTU,” said Miguel Perreta, the district lead negotiator. “Overall, the report highlights how close we are at bargaining.”
CTU president Stacy Davis Gates told reporters Wednesday said she was “dumbfounded” by the report because it unexpectedly affirmed some of the union’s viewpoints. Even though the union’s formal rejection moves the parties closer to a strike, union officials — like CPS leaders — saw the report as an opportunity to settle a deal.
“Look, we don’t agree with everything in it,” Davis Gates said. “There are things in it that make a lot of sense in terms of moving this process ahead. ”
The union and district began bargaining last April and the previous four-year contract expired in June. The two sides agreed to bring in a mediator in the fall after negotiations became increasingly contentious. The union, which has advocated for its most far-reaching and costly slate of proposals yet, paused the mediation process in December, suggesting the two bargaining teams were making headway.
But union leaders asked to restart the process after sticking points, including pay, staffing, and teacher evaluations, snarled the negotiations. CPS officials insisted that further concessions at the bargaining table would doom the deficit-plagued district to major financial trouble — and said they believe the findings of the neutral arbitrator would back them up.
Here’s what the fact-finder recommended
State statute says Malin can consider “all disputed issues” and make recommendations that take into account past contracts, the economy, and the impact on classrooms. The two parties can accept his recommendations as the “final resolution of the disputed issues” and incorporate them into the collective bargaining agreement.
In his 19-page report, Malin lays out the arguments made by both CTU and CPS on a series of contract provisions, including annual raises and the staffing levels of counselors, case managers, librarians, nurses, teaching assistants, family and community engagement coordinators, and teachers certified to work with English learners. One-by-one, he either sides with CPS or CTU or kicks the issue back to them for more bargaining.
He sided with the district on annual raises and staffing levels of counselors and case managers. He sided with the union on staffing levels for librarians and made middle-of-the-road recommendations on raises for seniority and staffing levels for teaching assistants, family and community engagement coordinators, and teachers certified to work with English learners.
Malin did not grapple with the disagreement over adding more preparation time for elementary school teachers. CTU is asking for an additional 20 minutes of preparation time, with no loss of instructional time, including by adding enrichment classes for students. The district’s counter is to add an additional 10 minutes of prep time by tweaking existing preparation periods and “reallocating” a few additional minutes.
The union started setting the stage for ultimately rejecting the report long before it was complete: CTU leaders said Malin has been fair, but argued that the process is set up to favor the employer, including by being overly focused on the financial implications of union proposals.
At a Wednesday press conference before the report’s public release, union officials echoed that assertion in explaining why they were rejecting its conclusions.
Union attorney Latoya Kimbrough said the report was “without a doubt the best fact-finding report the parties have received since this became a part of the law” under former Mayor Rahm Emanuel. She said the union hopes the report will push the district closer to the union’s priorities.
Hilario Dominguez, the union’s legislative director, said CTU also plans to hold meetings with the new members of the Chicago Board of Education over the latest in contract talks.
The board ultimately votes to approve the contract and, separately, amend the district’s budget to pay for the contract. The latter requires a two-thirds vote of approval.
Rejection of recommendations starts countdown for a strike
The district and union have resorted to a third-party mediator three times since the fact-finding process became part of state law in 2010. Twice, educators went on strike after one or both sides rejected the mediator’s recommendations.
When one side rejects the report, it becomes public — and starts a 30-day clock before the union can give the district a 10-day strike notice. On Wednesday, CTU officials did not suggest they were close to a strike.
Tensions over the teachers contract and how to pay for it fueled a clash between CPS CEO Pedro Martinez and Mayor Brandon Johnson, a former CTU employee who was elected with the union’s backing. Johnson’s handpicked school board fired Martinez without cause in December, leaving him at the helm of the district another six months under his contract.
Martinez said last week that the two sides have made a lot of progress in bargaining and are close to settling the contract.
“I can’t even imagine the need for a strike,” he told the new, partly elected board during its January meeting. “Given how close the two sides are, it wouldn’t make sense to do anything so drastic.”
The union has also acknowledged progress between both sides, but more recently has criticized the district for not bringing enough new ideas to the table to settle a deal.
The district and union have agreed to add some special education and support staff positions, set class size limits in most grades, and expand a Sustainable Community Schools program that pairs some schools with a community partner organization to beef up programs.
Prior to fact-finding, the two sides were already close on compensation. The district’s latest proposal, which the arbitrator sided with, would give teachers 4% to 5% raises each year and push the average teacher salary above $110,000 by the end of the contract.
But the union is pushing for additional staffing with assurance of no layoffs or furloughs — despite CPS officials’ insistence that would imperil some 7,000 positions the district added over the pandemic. And the CTU still feels the district can do better on pay, especially for veteran teachers.
Especially contentious have been union proposals that would give teachers much more leeway in picking their curriculums and scale back educator evaluations.
CTU could get help from state lawmakers to win changes on teacher evaluations. A bill that would no longer require districts to use student test scores to measure teacher performance sailed through committee this week and is sponsored by the Democratic Senate majority leader.
Becky Vevea contributed reporting.
Mila Koumpilova is Chalkbeat Chicago’s senior reporter covering Chicago Public Schools. Contact Mila at mkoumpilova@chalkbeat.org.
Reema Amin is a reporter covering Chicago Public Schools. Contact Reema at ramin@chalkbeat.org.
