March 29--In addition to early morning pickets at schools, the Chicago Teachers Union plans a full day of teach-ins and rallies at sites around the city during a one-day strike Friday that the union promises will shut down the schools, according to a preliminary schedule issued Monday.
The union exhorted members to participate in the walkout with a bulletin listing several ongoing grievances with the district and a warning that "we know that (Chicago Public Schools CEO Forrest) Claypool is planning scores of school closings, furloughs and layoffs for next school year."
The union offered no specifics on those charges, and a CPS spokeswoman said the allegations are "not true."
The CTU has set rallies at Chicago State University, the University of Illinois at Chicago, City Hall and the Thompson Center. Workers were also expected to protest at a Southwest Side plant owned by Mondelez International, where workers are being laid off.
Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers and an ally of CTU President Karen Lewis, is scheduled to appear at a teach-in on the campus of Northeastern Illinois University on Friday morning, according to a tentative schedule of events distributed by CTU.
CTU's walkout, while in part intended to bring attention to differences with the district over a contract, is also intended to mobilize pressure on Gov. Bruce Rauner and state lawmakers to approve legislation that would send money to public education and social service agencies. The union has said it will have support from some 50 allied community groups and unions Friday.
CPS on Tuesday is expected to provide details about contingency sites for students shut out of the classroom by Friday's walkout. Claypool said the district would provide about 250 sites, including some school buildings.
CTU asked members to distribute fliers to parents Wednesday and Thursday. CTU members were expected to picket their schools for at least two hours beginning as early as 6:30 a.m. Friday.
"No member may cross a picket line and individuals on each Contract Action Team must be assigned to record any scab activity," union materials distributed to members said.
The downtown demonstration is set to start at 4 p.m. at the Thompson Center.
"CTU staff will provide chant sheets and other picket line supports prior to the strike," the union told members, while encouraging school teams to "invest in at least one megaphone prior to the strike."
jjperez@tribpub.com
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