Chicago teachers worried over health benefit costs strike

Sep 10 2012

Concerned over negotiating the cost of their health benefits with their school district, Chicago teachers walk off the job for the first time in 25 years.

The Chicago Tribune/Los Angeles Times: Chicago Teachers Union To Strike After Talks Fail
The teachers union will strike Monday for the first time in 25 years after negotiations with Chicago Public Schools officials ended without a contract. … Lewis said the two sides were close on teacher compensation but the union had serious concerns about the cost of health benefits, the makeup of the teacher evaluation system and job security (9/10).

The Associated Press/Washington Post: Chicago Teachers To Strike For First Time In 25 Years After Talks With School District Fail
The two sides were not far apart on compensation, but were on other issues, including health benefits -- teachers want to keep what they have now -- and a new teacher evaluation system based partly on students' standardized test scores, Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis said (9/10).

The Wall Street Journal: Chicago Teachers Say They Will Strike
This is "a fight between old labor and new Democrats who support education reform and it has been brewing for a long time in cities across the country," said Tim Knowles, director of the Urban Education Institute at the University of Chicago, which conducts research on Chicago schools. The two sides have negotiated for months over issues including wages, health-care benefits and job security (Banchero, 9/9).