CTU To Vote On Merging With Charter School Union
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Members of the Chicago Teacher's Union are voting today on a plan to merge their union with a union representing charter school teachers.
WBBM Newsradio's Mike Krauser has more.
Jesse Sharkey, the Vice President of the Chicago Teachers Union, has called charter schools 'sweatshops.'
"What I mean is the charter industry is a place where people don't get a voice in their job if you work there. Where the model too often is young teachers come in, you used them up for a couple of years and you send them on their way," said Sharkey. "Teaching is a craft. It's something that if you do it for long enough, you get real skills, you get a connection to the community. That's what we really need. We don't need people who come in and treat it like a tour of duty in a Peace Corps type of situation."
The president of the Illinois Network of Charter Schools Andrew Broy says it's a power grab by the CTU.
84% of the charter school teachers approve of the merger.