Despite breaking a safety agreement with the Chicago Teachers Union, the head of CPS does not expect educators to go on strike after he announced the district will end its mask mandate next week.
When asked about that safety agreement during a live-streamed discussion with Chicago Department of Public Health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady on Tuesday, CPS CEO Pedro Martinez said he’d spoken with union leadership in recent weeks about the possibility of the district moving to a mask-optional approach as it will next week.
Classes were already canceled for five days earlier this year when teachers refused to work in-person in schools as the CTU negotiated that agreement during a spike in COVID-19 cases caused by the omicron variant. “I remain very confident about where we are right now as a region, as a city and as a state,” said Arwady, who added that CPS could reinstate its mask mandate if there is another COVID-19 surge.