Bill Giving IL Teachers Paid COVID Leave Hits Pritzker's Desk

SPRINGFIELD, IL —An Illinois teachers union is urging Gov. J.B. Pritzker to sign a bill that would provide administrative days to school employees for COVID-19-related absences, although the governor said he has "serious concerns" about the measure.

House Bill 2778 would require districts to provide COVID-19 administrative days to any school or college employees to be used for absences such as quarantining or testing. The bill also would provide paycheck protection for hourly employees if a school has to close because of an emergency.

The measure went to the governor's desk last week after the House passed it 92-23. The Senate had approved it 53-1.

The Illinois Education Association (IEA), which represents teachers and support staff outside the city of Chicago, said Pritzker should sign the measure into law.

"This is about doing what's right for our hard-working school employees, but also what's best for our students," said IEA President Kathi Griffin, who said her organization made more than 1,500 phone calls to lawmakers on behalf of the bill.

Griffin continued: "Currently, our educators and school employees are exhausting their sick time when they must quarantine because of COVID-19. Many students are too young to be vaccinated, which makes quarantining even more important for our students' safety."

Griffin said teachers who are early in their careers are running out of accrued sick days when forced to use them for COVID-related absences. This, the IEA president said, can lead to tough decisions about going to work sick, which jeopardizes unvaccinated children, or leaving the profession to find another job, an issue considering growing teacher and support staff shortages.

"Both of these options cause harm to students," Griffin said.

However, Pritzker was critical of the bill in a public statement last Friday.

"This legislation raises some serious concerns, including its cost, its potential to destabilize classrooms and discourage vaccinations," Pritzker said in a statement according to the Chicago Tribune.

Pritzker could veto the bill, though sources say that would be unlikely due to its overwhelming support in both the state House and Senate.

According to the IEA, school districts can use Elementary and Secondary Education School Relief (ESSER) dollars to fund HB 2778. The state has received $5 billion in ESSER funds as part of federal COVID relief packages.

State Rep. Janet Yang Rohr, who represents the 41st district in the western suburbs of Chicago, said she was a proud sponsor of HB 2778, which she said provides some much-needed relief to teachers and school support staff.

"All our education employees have stepped up during the COVID-19 pandemic," Yang Rohr said. "We know it's been an incredibly difficult time, but they continue to show up and do whatever it takes to provide our students an outstanding public education."