6
As Chicago teachers strike, parents have to make new plans
Chicago school teachers picket outside Wells High School on Sept. 10, 2012 in Chicago, Ill. More than 26,000 teachers and support staff hit the picket lines this morning after the Chicago Teachers Union failed to reach an agreement with the city on compensation, benefits and job security. With about 350,000 students, the Chicago school district is the third largest in the United States.
To view this content, Javascript must be enabled and Adobe Flash Player must be installed.
Kai Ryssdal: Twenty-nine thousand teachers, 350,000 kids -- and a big mess in Chicago. The first school strike there in a quarter-century. You get beyond the dollars and cents, the performance standards and everything else that's on the negotiating table, and what you've got is a whole bunch of parents trying to figure out what to do with their kids now that they can't go to class.
Sheila Coleman is one of those parents. She's a single mom to a 12-year-old daughter. Sheila, good to have you with us.
Sheila Coleman: Glad to be here.
Ryssdal: So tell me first of all what you're doing with your daughter today. I mean, it's a school day, right?
Coleman: Yes it is. Today, she's just at home because I really didn't have anywhere for her to go because I have to be at work at 7:30. They said they have programs open from 6 to 12, but that's not good enough for me; I work 7:30 to 3:30.
Ryssdal: So you left her at home?
Coleman: Yeah, today I left her at home. I'm probably going to have to stay home tomorrow, we'll see.
Ryssdal: When you were thinking about leaving your daughter at home, what kind of economic calculation did you make? Was it, 'I need to take a vacation day?' or 'Can I afford to hire a babysitter?' or did you have to do the math at all?
Coleman: Yeah, I mean, I can't afford a babysitter, I can't afford one. I had to think, 'Should I take this day off from work or is she going to be OK?' I was up to 12 midnight.
Ryssdal: Trying to figure it out?
Coleman: Yeah.
Ryssdal: Wow. And up at 6 this morning to go to work?
Coleman: Up at 5 in the morning to get to work.
Ryssdal: Up at 5. And you multiply that by the parents and families of 350,000 kids in Chicago, and it's a whole big mess.
Coleman: Yes it is, yes it is.
Ryssdal: Are you angry?
Coleman: Somewhat, because I think the kids should be in school. They just got back to school a week. It's only been a week.
Ryssdal: Tell me about your daughter -- is she a responsible girl? Is she going to be all right?
Coleman: Yeah, she is. She's very responsible, but I don't want to leave a 12-year-old by herself.
Ryssdal: What's she doing? Is she sitting at home watching TV?
Coleman: Yeah, but she was saying she didn't want a strike because she didn't want to have to make those days up in the summer.
Ryssdal: Sheila Coleman in Chicago, dealing with the teachers' strike. Ms. Coleman, thanks very much for your time.
Coleman: You're welcome.
What did this lady do with her daughter over the summer? Did I miss that Chi-town has year round schooling? What did the lady do for the two months her daughter was not in school? What did other people do? How is now different than the summer?
Why can't we hear the teachers arguement? They don't even want more money. All they want is sufficient resources for the kids including air conditioning and class sizes that are lower than 40. They even want social workers to help kids with mental health issues. Sounds reasonable to me.
sept27 - couldn't agree more. Childcare issues are persistent for any parent, very weak story there. Why are they striking? How do their benefits compare to other state employees or the private sector? How will this affect unions in the mid-west where they seem to be under attack?
NO, NO, NO. I too am a single parent with two children and no relatives in Chicago. We have known for MONTHS that this was possible. It called for preparation.
This short term shock reaps long term benefits for Chicago children. REAL education without being slave to standardized tests is valuable. Who can teach when they are fear driven? Bravo to the teachers for their strength and courage to stand up for what is fundamental correct and what they do best!
why don't you spend some time having a tacher explain what is at issue, I am tired of just hearing about inconvenience to parents. that is a simple and uninformative way to look at this issue. Are your corporate sponsors so anti-union that such coverage is not possible.
