The Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) was slammed for its “radical” demands after it was revealed it is seeking an extra $50 billion in contract negotiations to pay for salary increases, migrant resources, fully-funded abortions and LGBTQ-related materials in the classroom.
Illinois Policy Institute Director Mailee Smith reacted to the requests during “Fox & Friends,” accusing the CTU of acting on behalf of its members’ interests instead of students.
“This is just par for the course for them. They are not pushing things that are best for students,” Smith said on Monday. “They are pushing things that are best for their leaders’ political agenda. Other things that we see are climate justice demands, social justice demands, $2,000 per student for asylum seekers, they want housing for new teachers.”
“None of this is typical for collective bargaining,” she continued. “These are an agenda of the leaders that have nothing to do with the students.”
The union’s demands have not been made public but a leaked document sheds light on the eye-popping agenda, including Union President Stacy Davis Gates’ audacious call for yearly 9% wage increases for members through fiscal year 2028.
The average salary of a teacher in Chicago Public Schools is $93,182, according to research by the Illinois Policy Institute, a conservative nonprofit think tank. Therefore, the average teacher’s pay will increase by half to $144,620 in the 2027-2028 school year, it says.
