Chicago City Wire

A former member of the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) has filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) over a "retaliatory lawsuit" filed against them by the union after raising concerns about then-Cook County Commissioner Brandon Johnson earning a salary from the CTU in addition to his earnings from the county.  

The NLRB complaint filed April 1 says that the CTU is asking for “unduly harsh penalties for the supposed breach of agreement which include, but not limited to the return of back pay with interest.”

The lawsuit is also asking for “attorney’s fees and damages not directly related to the supposed breach of agreement.”

In reaction to the NLRB complaint, Jeff Orr, who co-hosted the podcast “Chicago Clout,” wrote on X that the NLRB complaint and the CTU lawsuit “is the biggest story the Chicago media has ignored.”

“This is in direct retaliation for something this CTU member did which relates to Mayor Brandon Johnson,” Orr said in the June 20 posting. “It goes back to his first run for Cook County commissioner in 2018. Brandon Johnson was supposed to be working full time at CTU but would clock in and then go campaigning. This member raised their concerns and Stacy Davis Gates [CTU president] and Jackson Potter [CTU vice president] then went on a campaign to destroy this member and yanked him from his position in the union and sent him back to teaching high school.”

Attempts to reach Orr for elaboration on his comments were unsuccessful.

The CTU did not return City Wire's call for comment.

Johnson was first elected as a county commissioner in 2018. He was re-elected in 2022, and then won the election for mayor in 2023.

An Illinois Policy Institute (IPI) report from October 2019 shows that Johnson, as a commissioner, double-dipped on his salary. He earned $85,000 a year as commissioner and continued to earn “at least $103,000 from the CTU,” the IPI report said.

He collected a minimum of $188,000 annually.

As mayor, he earns $221,000 annually after a recent pay increase.

Johnson’s approval ratings, meanwhile, are scraping bottom before the Democratic National Convention in August.

“Less than 20% think the city is better off today than a year ago on fundamentals such as the local economy and health,” Will Johnson wrote in an April commentary published in the Tribune, “and that percentage drops to 11% or lower on public safety, social inequities, the migrant situation and taxes, according to a new citywide survey by The Harris Poll.”

“Asked to grade Johnson’s performance as mayor,” Johnson continued, “9% of adults in Chicago say above average, and 41% say average. The biggest bloc — 50% — say below average, with most of them effectively giving the mayor an F by categorizing his achievements as not just low but very low.”

Chicago teachers aren’t faring much better.

The Illinois Assessment of Readiness (IAR) updated recently released by the district shows that only 31% of elementary school students in Chicago Public Schools were proficient in reading in 2024.

In math, 19% of Chicago third through eighth graders were proficient.