Despite revised statewide orders, Chicago Public Schools are still requiring universal masking in all schools and offices after the Chicago Teachers Union forced the change through a walkout. A judge was asked to let student faces go free.

Teachers union agreements may dictate enforcement of school mask policies – even if Illinois lifts its statewide school mask mandate, a judge noted.

A Sangamon County judge temporarily ended Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s school mask mandate, and Pritzker’s appeal of that ruling lost. Yet the fight showed Illinois teachers unions want kids masked statewide on Pritzker’s say-so alone.

Chicago Teachers Union takes credit for spreading the “new gospel” of union strike power across the nation. If the CTU-backed Amendment 1 passes in November, it will lock the union’s militant tactics into the state constitution, to the detriment of children and parents statewide.

Chicago Teachers Union President Jesse Sharkey announced he’s returning to the classroom once his term expires in June. Sharkey has led CTU since 2014 through three work stoppages.

The Members First Caucus said the current Chicago Teachers Union leaders see “work stoppages and strikes as the first step, and not the last one.” They want less political activism and more focus on delivering for members and students.

Amendment 1 would give Illinois teachers a permanent right to strike, taking more class time away from teachers who believe their place is with their students instead of on the picket line. Voters will decide Nov. 8.

Parents of Chicago Public Schools students sued to end the “remote work action” by Chicago Teachers Union members that kept 340,000 students out of classrooms for five days. The walkout is over, but the lawsuit is continuing to prevent the next illegal strike.