Again, then, the idea of a 22% increase in pay (a) wasn’t proposed by the CTU, but by an independent mediator (b) was then embraced by the CTU and (c) is no longer on the table, according to both parties.

The rehiring issue isn’t about teachers who’ve been put out for cause– what the CTU is proposing is that teachers working in schools that close (for whatever reason– see below) ought to have some sort of priority when positions open up elsewhere. CPS’ HR department wants principals to have complete autonomy in hiring decisions when they have an opening. I can see both sides of that one.

As for why schools close: CPS’ student body has been shrinking for years, leaving a lot of schools under-enrolled. That’s meant some schools closing, just because it’s inefficient to keep two half-full buildings open– and this is going to increase in the next few years.

So, where two schools in the same neighborhood are both half-full, one of them will close. It’s pretty rare for one school’s teachers to be measurably better than the other, so which of those two schools closes comes down to blind luck. If you’re one of the unlucky teachers, well, I can understand wanting some kind of leg up in finding a job at another school in the same district.