Dist. 130 Teachers Allege Maggots In Toilet, Black Mold, Filth Found All Over Schools

BLUE ISLAND, IL—Teachers in Blue Island have filed an OSHA complaint against Cook County School Dist. 130 over alleged filthy and biohazardous conditions inside the district’s elementary schools since the union custodians were laid off in August.

Members of the Blue Island Education Association state that their repeated requests to clean the schools have gone unfulfilled by the school district. Dist. 130 includes schools in Blue Island, Crestwood and Alsip.

“Enough is enough. This is why there are laws protecting workplace safety. Our schools are so unbelievably dirty they are literally hazardous to our health and our students’ health,” Blue Island Education Association President Sherri Roozee-Sera said in a written statement. “The administration continues to insist our buildings and our classrooms are clean. They are not, and we are asking the state to intervene.”

The BIEA is planning a community rally Wednesday, Sept. 30. It will begin at 5 p.m. at Nathan Hale Primary School, 5324 W. 135th St., Crestwood, where the district administration is headquarted. Rallygoers will begin gathering at 4:30 p.m. Several local leaders, parents, community members and teachers will be speaking.

Photos included with the teachers’ 18-page complaint filed Tuesday under the Illinois Occupational Safety Health Act (IL OSHA) on Tuesday show a range of filthy and unsanitary conditions inside Dist. 130 schools. Conditions in the teachers’ complaint cite inadequate removal of garbage and waste, standing water and water leaks, falling or damaged ceiling tiles, evidence of mold and suspected mold and sewage contaminations. Other pictures showed evidence of rodents and insects, such as cockroaches and flies.

The photos are said to have been taken by teachers post-Labor Day, when an outside company was said to have been brought in to deep clean the schools. A photo from a school restroom showing what appears to be maggots inside a toilet taken last week.

“We have asked repeatedly for these things to be addressed to no avail. We’ve asked the administration again and again to clean our classrooms and facilities. We’ve gone to the board of education and made them aware of the conditions, and still our schools are dirtier than ever before,” Roozee-Sera said. “Now we’re asking the state to help us. Our students deserve safe and healthy schools. They have a right to equitable learning conditions. No children should be forced to learn in these conditions. Our students, our community, deserves so much better.”

Dist. 130 has issued a series of updates on its website regarding collective bargaining sessions with SEIU Local 73, the union representing the district’s school custodians. District officials claimed that 22 collective bargaining sessions have taken place since July 2025. When both sides could not reach an agreement, the District 130 school board voted to lay off the union custodians, who are still collecting severance pay, at their Aug. 18 board meeting.

Since then, the district hired an outside company, which was supposed to begin work on Sept. 8. The new custodians have been unable to start for weeks because the district failed to conduct timely background checks on the outsourced employees. Now the district is paying outsourced employees and also the custodians who were laid off.

“We did not want or plan to be in this situation,” district officials said, attributing the delay to a new custodial staff on background checks. “It was our hope that the collective bargaining process would result in an agreement with SEIU.”

The school board maintained that it was considering laying off the union custodians and outsourcing their jobs to HES Facility Management. D130 board members claim they did not base their decision solely on the inability to reach an agreement, despite negotiation sessions, federal mediation sessions, and additional meetings.

“The district had experienced concerns involving staffing, attendance and leave, equipment maintenance, inconsistent completion of custodial responsibilities, and the consistency of building cleanliness,” the district’s statement said. “These concerns were part of the information considered by the board in determining whether the existing service model was meeting the needs of our students, staff, and schools.”

District 130 officials also stated South Cook Intermediate Service Center conducted visual inspections of Cook County School District 130 schools on Sept. 21 in response to concerns regarding sanitary conditions.

“[Inspections] frequently noted evidence of recent cleaning and operational restrooms with basic supplies,” the district said. “South Cook also noted individual matters for district follow-up, which are being addressed through our normal maintenance and operational processes.”

SEIU Local 73 division director Shea Marshall said the custodians agreed to all the district’s proposals, except for waiving their right to bargain over outsourcing, “which, in our opinion, is illegal.”

The custodian union has filed an “all-affected grievance” over mold in CCSD 130 schools with the Illinois Education Labor Relations Board and has asked for an injunction to stop what it believes is a violation of Illinois labor law.

“Although our new union contract was approved recently, the district has refused to recognize it for more than a month and therefore cannot move forward. We believe the state labor board should intervene and direct the district to stop,” Marshall said.