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If there’s any good news in the new Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) contract, it’s that despite intense political pressure, CPS CEO Pedro Martinez held the line on four key issues: modest pay raises, limiting staff increases, protecting instructional time, and maintaining the current evaluation system.
The bad news? The contract, the fifth biggest issue, will cost taxpayers $1.5 billion while failing to remove CTU-imposed barriers to school improvement or expand public school options for parents.
The Five Biggest Issues1. The Contract’s CostCTU’s initial demands would have cost $10 billion over four years. The final agreement, which mirrors Martinez’s contract offer from six months ago, will cost $1.5 billion—matching the previous record-setting CTU contract. And like that contract, it includes no concessions from the CTU.
2. Pay RaisesCTU demanded a 9% salary increase. In the end, they accepted the 4% first-year and 5% second-year increases that CPS originally offered, with additional raises for veteran teachers. However, these increases stack on top of “step-and-lane” raises, meaning most teachers will see their annual pay increases nearly double.
3. Staff IncreasesCTU wanted 13,900 new staff members; CPS sought to maintain current staffing levels. The final contract adds 800–900 additional staff in targeted areas—on top of the 9,000+ full-time positions added since 2019. Today, CPS has one staff member for every 7.6 students.
4. Instructional TimeCTU pushed for more prep time at the expense of instructional time. CPS resisted, but for the second straight contract, the district will spend $1.5 billion without adding a single minute of extra instructional time—even though increasing instructional time is one of the most effective ways to boost student performance.
5. Teacher EvaluationsCPS refused to weaken teacher evaluations, but the current system is already toothless. There’s no link between teacher evaluations and student performance, nor are there consequences for poor evaluations or even misconduct.
A $1.5 Billion Status Quo AgreementThis contract does nothing to halt CPS’s retreat from high standards and accountability, nor does it remove CTU contract restrictions that prevent Local School Councils and principals from making meaningful decisions about their schools. It also further cements the CTU’s efforts to eliminate public school alternatives, such as charter and magnet schools.
The Continued Abandonment of Standards and AccountabilityCPS is moving toward a “soft” scoring and assessment system, shifting focus from student achievement to vague measures of social and emotional development. This is the institutional equivalent of grade inflation—ensuring students and schools look better on paper, regardless of actual learning outcomes.
In December 2023, the mayor-appointed school board voted to end school rankings based on performance. Though CPS will continue reporting standardized test results due to state requirements, these results will no longer be used to assess schools internally.
Even teacher evaluations have been gutted. In 2021, despite plummeting student test scores, CTU walkouts, and forced remote learning, 98% of CPS teachers were rated “excellent” or “proficient”—up from 91.4% in 2019 and 85.6% in 2018. This glaring disconnect between teacher evaluations and student performance undermines accountability.
CTU’s Barriers to Improving Neighborhood SchoolsThe new CTU contract expands its Sustainable Community Schools model while pushing a new school funding formula based on “need” rather than enrollment. In reality, this is a smokescreen to protect union jobs at severely under-enrolled schools.
For example, Manley High School has a capacity for over 1,000 students but enrolls just 78—spending $45,000 per student. Douglas High School has a capacity of 900 but enrolls just 35—spending $68,000 per student. By contrast, fully enrolled Northside College Prep spends just over $16,000 per student.
CPS has 163 schools operating at less than half capacity—one-third of all CPS buildings. At least 20 schools operate at less than 25% capacity, yet many fail to educate the students who remain. This contract and funding formula further entrench obstacles to closing or consolidating underused schools, even when there is community consensus.
The Sustainable Community Schools model—set to expand from 20 to 70 schools under the new contract—has been a disaster. Illinois State Board of Education data shows that these schools perform worse than both selective-enrollment and traditional public schools by almost every measure.
CTU’s Efforts to Eliminate Even Public School ChoiceCTU was instrumental in killing the Invest in Kids tax-credit scholarship program. When it ended, at least 15,000 students lost scholarships, and several private schools closed permanently. But CTU isn’t stopping there—it’s working to eliminate charter and magnet schools as well. The last two CTU contracts imposed a moratorium on charter school growth and capped enrollment at 101% of 2019–2020 levels. The new contract continues this cap through 2027–2028.
CTU falsely claims public charter schools drain funding from traditional public schools. In reality, charter schools receive $8,600 less per student than the district average. Charter schools serve over 54,000 students, 98% of whom are Black and Latino. Charters make up 10% of CPS elementary students and 25% of high schoolers. Recent research confirms charters outperforming traditional public schools. A 2023 Stanford CREDO study found that charter students achieve much stronger academic gains, particularly among disadvantaged children.
A System Rigged Against Families Seeking Better SchoolsFor many low-income Black and Latino families, charter schools, magnet schools, and private-school scholarships are the only alternatives to failing neighborhood schools. Blocking these options perpetuates systemic inequality.
CTU’s iron grip on CPS has made it nearly impossible for Local School Councils or principals to adopt better models. Schools lack control over their budgets, staffing, and instructional time. The system is designed to protect CTU jobs—not educate children.
CEO Martinez’s last-minute stand against CTU’s worst demands was commendable. But let’s not be fooled: This contract is another victory for the status quo. It further entrenches CTU’s dominance, it weakens school accountability, and it denies parents the right to choose better schools for their children.
And taxpayers? They’re stuck with a $1.5 billion bill to pay for it all.