Chicago Teachers appear to be the winner

[HiPointDem]

If the point of going on strike is to get a better deal than you would have received without it, then the Chicago Teachers Union is already a pretty clear winner this week in its confrontation with Mayor Rahm Emanuel and his school board.

If the point of going on strike is to give voice to the frustrations of your members and to allow them to vent their anger, then you’d have to say the CTU was a runaway winner on that front as well.

And if the point of going on strike is to let your employer know you’re not going to be taken for granted in the future, then score another one for the CTU.

As negotiators worked into the night to put what were expected to be the finishing touches on a contract settlement that union leaders could take to a vote Friday, it’s a tad premature to assess winners and losers not knowing the full parameters of a final deal.

But unless the union totally capitulates on the last major issue on the table, it’s hard to see how CTU President Karen Lewis and her members come out of this week as anything but a decisive winner.

http://www.suntimes.com/news/brown/15133596-452/teachers-appear-to-be-the-winner.html#.UFM7VK1Y9po.twitter

[chknltl]

1. In my heart, I know the ultimate winners will be the students.

Pretty much the bottom line for most teachers.

GO Teachers GO!

[tama]

2. Of course corporate Dems

didn't want this strike. They made special anti-CTU law that required 75% of all members of union to vote for strike and believed that would be enough to stop the strike and make the union powerless. Teachers wanted strike practically in unison, together with majority of parents and other members of community.

[Starry Messenger]

3. They won when they got the strike vote.

The Emanuel machine was so smug about thinking they'd blocked CTU's ability to strike. At that point, Rahm brought a knife to a gun fight. The union pretty much had to strike and did so with great elan. A clear victory.

The fallout should be fascinating.