CTU wants a day off for students and teachers — for political activism
The Chicago Teachers Union wants the mayor and school board to approve May 1 as a paid day off and excused absence for a “Day of Civic Action.”
Planning to join a national day of “no work, no school, no shopping” May 1, CTU is launching “what amounts to a one-day strike,” and pushing students out of classrooms for it.
The union’s House of Delegates passed a resolution March 11 demanding that the mayor and the Chicago Public Schools board go along with a scheme to take kids and teachers out of school for a paid day off and excused absence. The move would be illegal, as the law prohibits any walkouts by state and local government workers under contract.
In a petition to Mayor Brandon Johnson and the Chicago Board of Education, CTU notes the importance of schools as “centers for learning.” Yet the union regards attending class May 1 as less important than its “equity” agenda and “the autonomy of locally governed public schools.”
Notably, in a memo released April 8, according to the Chicago Tribune, CPS CEO Macquline King said “the District’s position is to remain open on May 1.” The Board of Education has not voted on the issue.
Scrapping classes for a day of political activism isn’t in the educational best interest of students. Just 2-in-5 CPS students read at grade level, 40.1% are chronically absent and enrollment has declined by 9,000 students in the past year alone.
Asking CPS to close school and encouraging families to “participate in city-wide events” instead will not improve students’ ability to read and do math. CTU should not pull teachers out of classrooms in its quest to become a controlling political party in Chicago.
The union also may want to step back from its relentless political pursuits and keep in mind that it’s less popular than ever. A record-low 27.5% of Chicago voters have a favorable opinion of CTU. More than half — 53.6% — dislike the union.
CTU members already miss a significant class time. More than 43% of CPS teachers were absent 10 or more days in 2025, the highest in 10 years. The statewide rate was 34%.
The mayor and school board should reject CTU’s effort to put politics over students.