A group of religious leaders said Wednesday it has been asked by the Chicago Teachers Union
to take on the role as witnesses to ensure the validity of the ballot
count, as union members currently vote to determine whether to authorize
the city’s first teachers' strike in 25 years.
Voting began
Wednesday morning for the more than 25,000 members of the country’s
third largest teachers' union, after nearly a year of negotiations
between the educators and the Chicago Board of Education that have stalled over issues regarding the length of school days, class sizes, pay raises and job security.
Amid
a backdrop that included the front of the Merchandise Mart building –
the location of where the vote count is to be conducted – clergy members
of the worker-rights advocacy group, Arise Chicago
said their involvement in the ballot count process was to ensure the
integrity of the process, and not to lend their support to any one side.
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