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Teachers Union suit goes after law cracking down on public pension abuse

Teachers Union suit goes after law cracking down on public pension abuse

 

 

October 09, 2012|By Noreen S. Ahmed-Ullah | Tribune reporter

Fearing cuts to the pension benefits of its “ordinary” members, the Chicago Teachers Union filed a lawsuit in Cook County Circuit Court Tuesday that goes after a state law' class="itxtrst itxtrstimg itxthookicon" v:shapes="itxthook0icon">  passed in January that was intended to crackdown on public pension abuses.

Two other unions, IBEW Local 9 and Laborers’ Local 1001,  are also plaintiffs the lawsuit class="itxtrst itxtrstimg itxthookicon" v:shapes="itxthook1icon">, which asks the court to find that the law cannot be constitutionally applied members who were participants in the Chicago Teachers’ Pension Fund, the Laborers’ & Retirement Board Employees’ Annuity & Benefit Fund of Chicago, or the Municipal Employees’ Annuity & Benefit Fund of Chicago before Jan. 5.

The state law was intended to end pension abuses that saw top union officials land hefty retirement packages, double dip and substitute teach for one day but win benefits for life. But CTU officials said in a press release that while aimed at those “who were allowed by the legislature to game the system” the law could wind up hurting  “ordinary employees.”

“This lawsuit seeks only to protect the pension benefits of ordinary employees earned through their many years of public service and contributions to the funds,” CTU President Karen Lewis said in a statement.

Also on Tuesday, the Chicago Teachers’ Pension Fund said it had won an appeal  in its lawsuit that accused the Chicago Board of Education of failing to contribute a required $37.5 million in the 2010 fiscal year.

The Illinois Appellate court ruling from Sept. 28 reverses a lower court’s finding in favor of the Board of Education.

nahmed@tribune.com

http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2012-10-09/news/chi-teachers-union-suit-goes-after-law-cracking-down-on-public-pension-abuse-20121009_1_public-pension-top-union-officials-land-teachers-union-suit

 

 

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CPS, teachers end legal battles in new contract - Chicago Tribune

 

At board meeting, union asks for district's plan to close schools

 

September 25, 2012|By Noreen S. Ahmed-Ullah, Chicago Tribune reporter

 

CPS board President David Vitale listens Tuesday as school principals tell the board about their achievements. (Heather Charles, Chicago Tribune)

A tentative contract between the Chicago Teachers Union and Chicago Public Schools brings with it closure on lawsuits and labor grievances filed by both sides before and during the seven-day strike, according to a copy of the agreement posted online by the union.

With teachers ending their walkout last week, the union agreed to give up its fight over the 4 percent raise that was eliminated by the district last year because of financial problems. The union also said it would end a protracted legal battle over the layoffs of 1,300 teachers in 2010.

The latter case was before a federal judge after many twists and turns. The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals had sided with the union; then the Illinois Supreme Court backed the district's position that the laid-off teachers did not have a right to be rehired when jobs opened up. The union has now agreed to drop the lawsuit after reaching a pact that allows eligible laid-off teachers, including those dismissed in 2010, to be put into a hiring pool. Fifty percent of new positions must go to laid-off teachers.

Contract language, which apparently was still being hammered out as late as Monday, also details the order of layoffs. With a new evaluation system not rating teachers until the end of the school year, most layoffs of tenured teachers will continue to be based on seniority this year. Reformers have long fought for those decisions to be based on teacher performance.

Other matters, such as the union's Sept. 5 complaint about unfair labor practices and the city's bid for an injunction ending the strike, were dropped after being addressed by the agreement.

But even as teachers are preparing to vote on the contract Tuesday, concerns persist over the district possibly closing up to 120 underenrolled and low-performing schools in coming years.

At a Board of Education meeting Tuesday, teachers union recording secretary Michael Brunson called for an end to "saber rattling" and called on CPS to release its school closing plans.

"You need to release that information to the CTU and the public so we can openly debate the merits of this proposal," Brunson said.

Board President David Vitale denied there was any such plan but reiterated the district position as stated at the negotiating table. "We've said we know there's excess capacity in the system, and over time we need to reduce it," Vitale said.

Tuesday's meeting was the first for the CPS board since the contract agreement was reached. Board members will not vote on the contract until Oct. 24, and CPS has yet to say how it will pay for the new teacher contract. The district must modify its budget to take into account the new raises.

The contract calls for base salary increases of 3 percent this year and 2 percent in each of the following two years, as well as some lucrative raises for experience and advanced education. While some teachers will earn raises worth about 25 percent over three years, the average teacher, who has 14 years of experience and a master's degree or higher, will get 7.5 to 9.6 percent gains over the length of the contract.

The union has touted its success in fighting off Mayor Rahm Emanuel's attempts to institute merit pay and more stringent requirements in a new teacher evaluation system, as well as securing a recall policy for top-performing teachers.

Continued at ….. http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2012-09-25/news/ct-met-cps-board-meeting-0926-20120926_1_cps-board-new-teacher-contract-chicago-teachers-union