SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Celina Villanueva (D-Chicago) voted to expand the collective bargaining rights of Chicago teachers today.

“I am a product of Chicago Public Schools,” Villanueva said. “I knew the look of stress on my teacher’s face when they had to handle 30-plus students. We need to give teachers the power to advocate for our students and our communities.”

House Bill 2275 would once again make major factors like class size, staff size and length of the academic year subject to collective bargaining. Teachers in Chicago Public Schools (CPS), particularly in Black and Latinx communities, have suffered class sizes that exceed CPS’s established limits and staff shortages including nurses, special educators and social workers.

The legislation would also delete the requirement that, if after 60 days, a dispute or impasse exists between an educational employer and a labor union over matters that are a permissive subject of collective bargaining, the parties must resolve it through mediation in lieu of a strike. This requirement applies only to Chicago Public Schools.

House Bill 2275 passed in both chambers.