OAPSE

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Check out our new video: We are OAPSE

Every single day, in communities all across Ohio, OAPSE members are making a difference in the lives of many of our state’s most vulnerable citizens — children, students, and the developmentally disabled. We are bus drivers, aides and mechanics. We are crossing guards, secretaries, and custodians. We are library, educational and special education aides. We are food service workers. Health aides. And security officers.

We are 35,000 members strong.

We are OAPSE.

As out-of-touch politicians push anti-worker legislation like the so-called Right to Work bills and drastic cuts to local governments and schools, it’s more important than ever that strong unions fight for us and the critical work we do.

Get to know us.

Stand with us.

Please share this video and visit oapse.org — often — for important updates and news affecting OAPSE members and all Ohio working families.

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Register Online to Vote by April 3 for Primary Election

Yes, that’s right. Ohioans can now register to vote online at the Ohio Secretary of State’s website. You can also change your address and update your voter information by clicking on the link below.

The deadline to register in order to vote in the May 2 Primary Election is Tuesday, April 4. Make sure you can vote — especially if you live in Columbus, where school board candidates have a primary — or if your school district has a levy on the ballot. Some city officials are also up for election this spring.

To use the online registration system, you need a valid driver’s license. And you need to provide your current address and the last four digits of your Social Security number.

Once you fill out the information online, your information will be compared with Ohio’s Statewide Voter Database and data from the Bureau of Motor Vehicles to locate your information.

Click here to update your registration or register to vote.

 

 

 

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“Right to Work” Introduced in Ohio; Beaten in New Hampshire

Legislation that would make Ohio a “Right to Work” state for public employees was introduced in the Ohio House of Representatives and referred to the Finance Committee.

Representative John Becker is behind the bill, which would — among other things — eliminate the ability of public sector unions to collect fair share fees from workers who do not want to belong to the union in their workplace but want all of the wage hikes benefit improvements negotiated by the union.

House Bill 53 also would change some civil service provisions for workers. It has not been scheduled for hearings and currently has only about a dozen co-sponsors.

“So-called Right to Work” legislation comes up every legislative session because some of the representatives are strongly opposed to unions,” said OAPSE Director of Political Action and Legislative Affairs.

“However, Speaker Cliff Rosenberger (R-Clarksville) has said that HB 53 is not a focus for leadership. He has referenced the battle over SB5 in 2011, when we took RTW to the ballot in the form of Issue 2 and beat it back with 62 percent of the vote,” Weston said.

“Of course, we will be watching closely and keeping our members informed of any action on HB 53.”

Twenty eight states have RTW legislation on the books. But in a bit of good news, the New Hampshire legislature recently voted RTW legislation down with the help of 29 Republicans were went on the record against the anti-worker measure.

Be sure to check our Twitter feed and Facebook page for the latest on legislation that impacts OAPSE members.

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State Officers Re-Elected

The three state officers for OAPSE have been re-elected for a four-year term, which will begin in May. OAPSE State Nominating Committee Chair Deb Basham said State President JoAnn Johntony, State Vice President Lois Carson and State Secretary Sandy Wheeler  faced no opposition. Nominations for the union’s top offices closed January 17, and Basham notified the candidates and union leadership that the election process ended because they were the only candidates.

“We are very humbled by the faith that our members have put in us to continue to lead OAPSE,” said Johntony. “We want to thank the members of OAPSE and commit to everyone that we will be there for you as we face the challenges ahead. We’re going to fight for our members and our union, and we will make you proud that you supported us for another four years in office.”

Carson agreed, and echoes Johntony’s vow to be a strong voice for every OAPSE member.

“We are so thankful for the opportunity to work on behalf of our members. With our Executive Director Joe Rugola, Associate Director Gary Martin and the best union staff in the state if not the country, we will continue to be a force for justice and fairness for OAPSE members and all workers. Together with our executive board and our leadership in our districts and locals, we are going to fight and we are going to be heard.”

Wheeler said she values the confidence OAPSE members have placed in her, Carson and Johntony and is committed to working hard to prove they made the right choice.

“We are so honored by the faith and trust our members have placed in us. And we are absolutely committed to doing right by all of you. We pledge to work with our locals, our districts and our executive board and staff to take on every challenge we face. Together, we will build an even stronger union.”

Johntony, Carson and Wheeler will be officially sworn in on May 19 at the OAPSE Executive Board Meeting in Columbus.

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Ohio Leaders: Trump Education Nominee Betsy DeVos Owes State $5 Million

President-elect Donald Trump has nominated Betsy DeVos for Secretary of Education. The billionaire from Michigan will appear before Congress next week to answer questions about her qualifications and fitness to serve. If Ohio Congresswomen Marcy Kaptur and Joyce Beatty have anything to say about it, DeVos will be asked why she has not paid Ohio the $5.3 million she owes after violating campaign finance laws in this state. According to Kaptur, All Children Matter, a pro-charter school group headed by DeVos, illegally funneled nearly $1 million to Republican candidates and did not pay the fines assessed to the group in 2008.

U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown has sent DeVos a letter urging her to pay what she owes, and U.S. Representative Joyce Beatty asked in a tweet, “How can the public trust Ms. DeVos to ensure that borrowers repay their student loans when the group she chaired has failed to pay fines that were imposed nearly a decade ago?”

DeVos is an education lobbyist with ties to student loan companies. According to a New York Times editorial, “Beyond erasing concerns about her many possible financial conflicts, Ms. DeVos also faces a big challenge in explaining the damage she’s done to public education in her home state, Michigan. She has poured money into charter schools advocacy, winning legislative changes that have reduced oversight and accountability. About 80 percent of the charter schools in Michigan are operated by for-profit companies, far higher than anywhere else. She has also argued for shutting down Detroit public schools, with the system turned over to charters or taxpayer money given out as vouchers for private schools. In that city, charter schools often perform no better than traditional schools, and sometimes worse.”

You can let our Ohio Senators know you oppose this appointment and the privatization of public schools and that you stand for charter schools being held to the same standards as our public schools.

Call Sen. Portman – 202-224-3353

Call Sen. Sherrod Brown – 202- 224-2315

And let them know you want them to hold Betsy DeVos accountable.