Chicago City Wire

The Chicago Teachers Union and Chicago Public Schools has failed to reach a deal and in-person learning has been delayed again.

“We are disappointed to report that at this time, no deal has been reached between CPS and the Chicago Teachers Union leadership,” the district said in a statement, The Epoch Times reported.

The nearly 70,000 kindergarten through 8th-grade students will have to continue with remote learning while the school district and the union continue to work on a deal.

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot wants a deal sooner rather than later, saying she is running out of patience at this point.

“We waited for hours last night—hours—and still did not receive a proposal from the Chicago Teachers Union leadership,” Lightfoot said at a press conference, The Epoch Times reported. “And as of this morning, we are still waiting—but to be clear, not patiently, not anymore.”

Talks between the CTU and CPS continue to be fruitless as they enter into another 24-hour cooling-off period to allow them another chance at talks. During this period no disciplinary action will be taken against teachers who refuse to conduct in-person lessons. There's yet to be an agreement by Thursday that will allow schools to reopen Monday. 

The CTU claims their demands have not been met which include phased re-opening, vaccination of at least 1,500 teachers, weekly testing of teachers and students and provision of accommodation for teachers with certain medical conditions. They also want CPS to be guided by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) health metrics when deciding reopening and closing dates.

Recently, CDC officials advised schools to reopen with safety measures, such as face coverings and social distancing. Rochelle Walensky, the agency's director told reporters Wednesday that vaccination of teachers was not a prerequisite for reopening and there was “increasing data to suggest that schools can safely reopen.”