Chicago’s teachers on strike. (Photo Courtesy of MPeake)
Chicago teachers themselves will say it: nobody wanted to go on strike. But today, after ten months of fruitless efforts to negotiate a fair contract, the city’s classrooms are empty and educators are walking picket lines for the first time in 25 years. At first glance, the strike looks like a negative outcome for everyone involved. Yet this morning a CNN.com opinion article makes a surprising case: the nation would actually be better off with more strikes.
That’s right: according to Chris Rhomberg, professor of Sociology at Fordham University, America would benefit from more disruptions of business and public services, more inconvenience, more striking workers sacrificing pay and worrying about their jobs, more rounds of tense negotiations.
And the strange truth is, he’s right. America would benefit from more strikes.
