A vote to end the Chicago teachers' strike could happen Wednesday afternoon if a ÿtentativeÿ agreement is reached, Chicago Teachers' Union President Jesse Sharkey said.þþSharkey addressed a group of reporters Tuesday evening after the union's House of Delegates meeting.þHe said the union has seen ÿmeaningful and importantÿ offers at the negotiating table, but added, ÿWe haven't settled everything.ÿþThe strike in the country's third-biggest school district enters its 10th day Wednesday.þþSharkey said the union negotiated with Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot until 5 p.m. Tuesday. At a news conference following the meeting, the mayor said she was ÿdisappointedÿ that the sides had not yet come to a resolution.þÿWhat's prolonging this strike is the unions' insistence on a shorter school day or school year and their insistences that I agree to support their political agenda,ÿ Lightfoot said.þChicago Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Janice Jackson spoke along with the mayor, saying in part to teachers, ÿYou have the power to end this strike and get our students back in classrooms tomorrow.ÿþJackson said the parties had resolved the ÿmajorÿ issues the union brought to them, including class sizes and higher pay for teachers.þþProgress madeþWhile an agreement with the teachers remains unsettled, Chicago Public Schools did reach an initial deal on Monday with SEIU Local 73, the union representing school support staff.þÿThis is a victory for working people in Chicago and shows what is possible when we unite and take action,ÿ SEIU Local 73 President Dian Palmer said.þþÿThe lowest-paid support workers who are the backbone of our schools are going to see raises that mean their families won't have to struggle living in an expensive city where costs keep going up.ÿþMembers of that union joined the teachers' strike Monday. Palmer said they will continue protests until the teachers' union gets an appropriate contract as well.þWhere the disagreement liesþSharkey said he and city officials -- including Lightfoot -- have actually found some common ground.þÿShe wants to prioritize money and resources to some of our neediest schools. I get that. I think that makes sense. So we're part of the way there,ÿ the teachers' union president said Monday. ÿBut there also needs to be something for schools that have massively oversized classes that are in other parts of the city.ÿþWhat the teacher's union wantsþThe CTU has been fighting for smaller class sizes, as some classrooms have more than 40 students.þAnd in a city where many children face poverty, violence or grief at a young age, teachers are pushing for more case managers, librarians and other support staff.þþIn addition to more staffing, ÿWe've asked the (school) board to give us a little more time to do our jobs,ÿ Sharkey said.þÿTeachers can call it preparation time, but you can call it collaboration time, you can call it time that we need to call parents, the time that we need to grade lessons, to give individual attention to students' work.ÿþSharkey said he understands the growing frustration over the ongoing strike.þÿNo one wants a long strike. That's not what we set out to accomplish,ÿ he said.þÿWhat we set out to accomplish was a fair settlement where we can look our students and each other in the eye and say, 'Yep, conditions are going to be better.þCNN's Sheena Jones, Christina Maxouris and Chuck Johnston contributed to this report.
Source: CNN
