Emergency meeting for CTU body tasked with setting strike dates

Even before the results of its second strike vote have been tallied, the Chicago Teachers Union has called an emergency meeting of the governing board authorized with setting strike dates.

Instead of waiting until the regularly scheduled Oct. 5 meeting, the House of Delegates will convene a week early on Wednesday, Sept. 28, CTU Vice President Jesse Sharkey said Thursday.

The special meeting for the body of about 800 would have just one item on its agenda, he said: What's next in the contract process that began almost two years ago. The union's full membership of about 25,000 has been voting since Wednesday on whether to authorize a strike and voting will conclude on Friday. Results will be announced sometime next week.

Will delegates set a strike vote? "Maybe," Sharkey said. They also could set a later deadline for giving the state 10 days' required notice of a strike, too, if a contract hasn't been reached by that time, he said.

If delegates do vote to give notice right away, that could now make Oct. 11 the very earliest school day teachers could walk picket lines.

For the full story, click here.