The recent teacher strike may have been a good thing for the teachers’ union but it was a loser for students.

Grant Lundahl of The Vanderbilt Torch reports.

Chicago: Where Unions Win and Kids Lose

For a total of seven days, 350,000 children in the city of Chicago were delayed in returning to school due a strike called by the Chicago Teachers Union.  I am already bothered by that statement, and I haven’t even described the outcome of the strike yet.

During the past month, the struggle pitting the Chicago Teachers Union against Mayor Rahm Emanuel and the Chicago Public School administration has been propelled to the forefront of national news.  The teachers, who number 30,000 strong, possessed a list of demands that included a 30% increase in wages over four years, better opportunities for laid-off teachers, and increased funding to art and music programs.  On the other side on the conflict, Emanuel and the CPS argued for a longer school day, merit-based pay, and a policy that student test scores would account for 45% of teacher evaluations.  After a number of failed negotiations prior to the beginning of the school year, members of the Chicago Teachers Union voted overwhelmingly in favor of authorizing a strike.

And on September 10, 2012, members of the CTU striked while 350,000 kids stayed home for school.  This lasted for seven more days until September 18, when delegates from the CTU voted to end the strike.

A deal was finally hammered out by Emanuel and the CTU, and on the surface the contract seems to make concessions to both sides.  Teachers are to receive an average raise of around 17% over the next four years, in addition to health insurance and seniority pay increases.  Laid-off teachers will also be given better job opportunities.  Meanwhile, the school day has been increased, and test scores will account for 30% of a teacher’s evaluation.  Both sides claim to be “satisfied” with the conditions of the contract, but it is obvious that neither considers the deal to be a major victory.

Nobody should be alarmed by the fact that $75 million will be added to the already $665 million deficit incurred by the Chicago Public School system this year.  In true Chicago fashion, cost is just an afterthought that takes backseat to realism—realism as in, where is this money really going to come from?  Working against such an enormous debt will inevitably force the CPS to close down more than 100 schools, a fact that has been accepted by both sides of the issue.

While debate over who has truly won the Chicago Teachers’ Strike of 2012 is raging, I’m going to go out on a limb and say the kids are the true losers in this deal.