School leaders urge Cook County to exempt suburban districts from paid-leave ordinance, citing staffing and budget strains

A coalition of suburban superintendents and school-board representatives told the Cook County Board of Commissioners that the county's paid-leave ordinance should be amended to exempt school districts, arguing the measure creates operational and financial burdens that could harm student safety and learning.

Speakers from multiple districts described existing leave arrangements and collective-bargaining frameworks that they said already provide generous leave for 10-month and 12-month employees. "The ordinance grants 10-month staff an additional 5 vacation days," said Jake Chung, assistant superintendent of human resources for East Maine District 63, adding that the change "will create the need for tens of thousands of additional substitute days across Cook County." Other superintendents quantified district-level costs and predicted staff shortages for specialized positions such as nurses, social workers, and special-education staff that are difficult to replace with substitutes.

Dr. Donna Simpson Lake, vice chair of the Illinois State Board of Education and superintendent of Community Consolidated Schools District 168, said school calendars already embed substantial unrestricted time and holiday breaks and asked the board to allow districts to continue negotiating paid leave through collective bargaining rather than applying a uniform county mandate. "We are already at 14 unrestricted days," she testified, explaining typical holiday and break periods.

Speakers urged the board to align county ordinance treatment with state law and to permit bargaining or explicit exemption for school districts and educational cooperatives. Janet Rogers, vice president of Harvard School District 152 Board of Education, provided a district-level estimate, saying the ordinance could cost Harvey School District 152 approximately $440,526 per year for additional leave days.

Board and staff context: Commissioners did not take a final vote on amending the paid-leave ordinance during this meeting. The paid-leave matter appeared on the agenda and generated significant public-comment time; commissioners signaled an interest in follow-up and in considering waivers or amendments but did not adopt an exemption at this session.

Why it matters: Superintendents argued the ordinance's one-size-fits-all approach may unintentionally worsen staffing shortages in schools, particularly for specialized roles that support vulnerable students, and could force districts to reallocate funds away from programs and classroom services. Advocates for the ordinance counter that it increases access to paid leave for low-wage workers who historically lack it; one union representative (Chicago Federation of Labor) testified in support of the ordinance at the meeting.

Next steps: School leaders requested a formal amendment to the paid-leave ordinance to exempt public school districts or to allow specific bargaining mechanisms; commissioners and staff were asked to consider those requests and to report back.