CCSD #130 Superintendent, Board of Ed Refuse to Let Public Comment at Meeting

In an unprecedented move, County School District #130 Superintendent Collen McKay refused to allow for public comment during last night’s Board of Education working meeting at Eisenhower Cooperative School.

Thirty custodial and maintenance workers, represented by SEIU Local 73, along with President Dian Palmer and union representatives were in the process of signing in for the public comment portion of the meeting when Superintendent McKay called for the sign-in book to be closed. After the call to order and pledge of allegiance, the board failed to follow the posted agenda by skipping the public comment portion and moving immediately into closed session. The board never returned to the public comment portion during the remainder of the meeting.

“Our members came here to exercise their first amendment right of free speech and call for an end to the administration’s racist and anti-union practices in Blue Island,” said SEIU Local 73 President Dian Palmer. “It was sad to see the School Board disrespect and ignore these workers.”

“Many of us custodians are doing the work of more than one person. We are constantly working short-staffed but they refuse to hire more staff, and they don’t want to give us raises. It’s clear that they do not care about the safety of our kids,” said Maria Martinez, Custodian.

Since 2022, the administration has repeatedly retaliated against union stewards and workers, and employees have been punished for alleged violations and then terminated for those same supposed violations.

Workers and SEIU Local 73 will be holding a press conference at the next Board of Education meeting on Tuesday, September 16 at 5:00 p.m., at Nathan Hale Intermediate School in Crestwood, to call out these unwarranted anti-union attacks.

“We want everyone to know what this administration is doing and that they can’t hide anymore,” said Palmer.

SEIU Local 73 represents 50 custodians and maintenance workers in the district. 95% of these workers are Black and Brown women and men.