CHICAGO – Thousands of teachers walked off the job Monday in Chicago, the third-largest U.S. school district, as city officials prepared to look after thousands of students who could end up wandering unsafe streets.
Some 26,000 teachers and support staff were expected to join the picket after union leaders announced they were far from resolving a contract dispute with school district officials. City officials acknowledged that children left unsupervised — especially in neighborhoods with a history of gang violence — might be at risk, but vowed to protect the nearly 400,000 students’ safety.
The walkout posed a tricky test for Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who said he would work to end the strike quickly.
“This is not a strike I wanted,” Emanuel said Sunday night, not long after the union announced the action. “It was a strike of choice … it’s unnecessary, it’s avoidable and it’s wrong.”
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