August 31, 2007. While TV cameras rolled, CTU attorney Lawrence Poltrock (center) argued with Roosevelt High School delegate Bill Malugen (partly obscured by camera) during the protests at Plumber’s Hall after the “vote” on the proposed contract brought in by Marilyn Stewart. Some observers at the time thought the two were about to come to blows. Poltrock’s law partner, his daughter Jennifer Poltrock, had served as “parliamentarian” at the raucous union meeting, which was convened on the Friday of Labor Day weekend to review Stewart’s contract proposal, and the big question before the city was whether the teachers were going to go on strike. By halfway through the meeting, the majority of the delegates were either skeptical about the Stewart proposal or opposed to it. Instead of allowing the delegates to ask questions and debate the contract for as long as necessary, Stewart claimed that the meeting had to clear the hall early. When the vote was finally called, Stewart called for the “Yes” votes. Then — despite an outcry from the delegates — she refused to call for the “No” votes and refused to heed calls for a count of the vote. At that point, Stewart simply ruled “The Ayes have it.” It was the first time in history that a vote of the House of Delegates on a CTU contract was not done by counting both the “Yes” and “No” votes. Jennifer Poltrock quickly claimed that Stewart didn’t have to count the “No” votes. Almost as quickly, Stewart disappeared. Stewart and the union officers went downstairs through a back door for a press conference. There, they tried to tell the media that the union delegates supported the contract, when in fact there had been no “No” votes allowed. Most of the delegates believed that had the “No” votes been taken, the contract would have been defeated. Stewart’s press conference was interrupted by chants of “No! No! No!” from hundreds of delegates who refused to leave the building. The delegates assembled outside the door of the press conference (doors behind Poltrock, above). The reporters who had been taking notes on what Marilyn Stewart was saying slowly left the room — despite attempts by CTU security to block the door — and covered the story among the mass of delegates chanting in opposition to the proposed contract. Substance photo by George N. Schmidt
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