OAPSE

AFSCME

By

OAPSE Stands with Tusky Valley

As most of you are aware, two weeks ago a tragic accident occurred involving students, staff, and parents of Tuscarawas Valley Local School District. As the community and school district work through this tragedy, there are now ways to donate to those who were affected.

In support of Tusky Valley and OAPSE Local 634, which represents classified staff in the school district, OAPSE’s State Officers and Executive Board sent a donation on behalf of all OAPSE members in memory of those who were lost.

If you would like to make a donation to those affected, please use the link below.

https://www.trojanfoundation.org/donate

By

OAPSE Member Stories: Pam Thomas, Coshocton City Schools

Pam Thomas of OAPSE’s Coshocton City Schools Local 387, is an Attendance Secretary at the High School, but there’s so much more to Pam’s story. She started as a part-time cook for Coshocton City Schools back in the mid ‘80s, almost 40 years ago. During her first couple of years with Coshocton Schools Pam went from part-time to full-time cook, then to one-on-one aide, and finally to special needs bus aide. In 1991, Pam became a custodian for the district while still subbing as an aide, selling tickets at sporting events, and helping with ACT and SAT testing. In 2007, Pam became a media center aide. Before settling in at her current classification of secretary, Pam also served the district as both a bus driver and aide. Throughout Pam’s career in the school district, she has worked in every classification OAPSE Local 387 represents.

When Pam first became an aide, one of her co-workers talked to her about joining the OAPSE Local. “When my co-worker explained the benefits of the union and how important it was to join, I signed up right away.” Thomas explains. “Being with the school district for as long as I have, I can look back and see how signing that membership app way back when was beneficial for not only me, but all the members of my Local through the years.” Pam not only joined her Local union but has been one of its strongest activists. Over the years, Pam has served as Local President, Vice President, and Secretary, and is currently OAPSE’s Eastern District Secretary and a State PEOPLE Committee Member. “Pam has been such a great mentor to me.” Current Local 387 President Molly Thomas stated. “She is always willing to help and ALWAYS has her fellow OAPSE Local members best interests in mind. She has laid the groundwork for us to be able to accomplish so much as a Local in negotiations. I will be forever grateful for the guidance she has provided me and our Local.”

Pam was widowed in 1991 with two children and has since become a grandmother of two. Pam married Terry Thomas in 2011. Terry worked 33 years with United Steelworkers Local 4377 and was a union steward for 20 of those years. Terry also has two children and six grandchildren.

“My OAPSE Local has had a lot of wins throughout the years, but maybe the biggest one was our latest contract!” Thomas declared. “And that is thanks to the great work of our negotiating team, Local leadership, and OAPSE field representative.” That contract included a bonus payment to all members along with salary raises in each of the three years following the effective date. On top of those increases, the Local was able to get 10 new salary steps added to their pay scales. This was a huge win for longtime members like Pam Thomas. Previously, their pay scales only had 10 steps in total. Members like Pam, who topped out at step 10 in the past, will be getting 5 additional steps this year and 5 steps next year, on top of their negotiated raise and bonus. This is a major win for career school employees in the district and will have a significant impact on their annual earnings.

OAPSE has been winning settlements like Coshocton’s all around the state, but these victories only happen when Local membership numbers are strong, and our leaders are ready to fight for what our members deserve. Pam Thomas and her Local members are proof that, “When We Fight Together, We Win Together!”

By

Update: School Employee Pension Changes

OAPSE has received a lot of questions regarding recent changes to the School Employees Retirement System of Ohio (SERS). We want to make sure all OAPSE members covered under SERS have the most up to date information, so you are not blindsided when it comes time to retire.

This summer, the Ohio Legislature passed a bill that gives SERS the power to use a calculation to stop school employees from pension spiking and putting a strain on your pension system. This calculation, the Contribution based Benefit Cap (CBBC), is a tool SERS will start using in 2024 to identify and prevent pension spiking or benefit inflation.

This CBBC calculation is not changing your pension benefit calculation. Pension benefits will continue to be calculated by your final average salary (highest 3 years averaged) and years of service (2.2% for each year of service).

OAPSE has been working with the SERS Board of Trustees to make sure employees who receive raises and promotions throughout their career will not be adversely affected. The SERS Board is made up of 9 members, 8 of whom are either active SERS members or SERS retirees themselves. 3 members of the SERS Board, Jim Haller, Barb Phillips, and Aimee Russell are also active OAPSE members, and 2 members of the SERS Board, Cathie Moss, and Frank Weglarz, are OAPSE retirees.

The CBBC calculation will only be used to identify SERS members going into retirement with a pension benefit much greater than the contributions they put into SERS. In a test run by SERS with 2023 retirees, less than 1% of retirements were flagged by the CBBC calculation. This means over 99% of SERS members will NOT be affected by the CBBC calculation. The small number of cases where the CBBC flagged a retiree were extreme. Most examples were school employees who doubled or even tripled their salaries a few years before retirement.

To help inform all SERS members, the SERS website has a dedicated page to explain the CBBC calculation: https://www.ohsers.org/cbbc-explained/

SERS will also be adding a calculator feature, so members can see where they stand regarding this change to the retirement system.

OAPSE will continue to monitor the SERS Board and any future changes SERS considers. OAPSE will continue to fight for our members, so they receive the pension they were promised and the retirement they deserve!

By

OAPSE Transportation Safety Committee Delivers Statement

After a tragic fatal accident early this school year, Governor DeWine formed a School Bus Safety Working Group to study student transportation and shape recommendations to improve safety. On October 12, that group met and OAPSE was there.

Lois Carson, OAPSE State President, and the members of the Transportation Safety Committee that she formed attended the meeting and delivered a statement to Governor DeWine’s Working Group on behalf of our union’s members statewide. (The full OAPSE statement can be found at the link below.)

OAPSE’s Transportation Safety Committee, chaired by OAPSE State Vice President Mike Lang, has been meeting since the Governor’s initial action and drafted their statement based on the concerns OAPSE members share on the issue of bus safety.

Transportation Committee Members pictured around the table (starting top left): Lois Carson, Randy Weston, Mike Lang, John Sindeldecker, Joe Rugola, Stephanie Wiley, Bev Payne. (Kathy Chamberlain not pictured)

When Governor DeWine formed his Working Group, he appointed one bus driver to the 15 member committee – OAPSE Northeast District President, and long-time bus driver, Davida Russell. Davida has attended all of the Working Group meetings and has helped shape the discussion on school bus safety.

“I am honored that Governor DeWine selected me to serve as a member of the Working Group studying school transportation safety.” Russell said. “I will be contributing the school bus driver viewpoint about the critical issues being studied and will advocate for the interests of bus drivers in the committee discussions.”

OAPSE Director of Political Action and Legislative Affairs, Randy Weston, has been attending the meetings and our union will continue to monitor the Governor’s Working Group. We will also continue to update OAPSE members as the Working Group moves towards recommendations later this year.

https://oapse.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/OAPSE-Statement-to-Gov.-School-Bus-Safety-Task-Force-10.11.2023-1.pdf

By

OAPSE Monitoring Gov. DeWine’s School Bus Safety Working Group

As OAPSE members are aware, there was a fatal crash involving a school bus three weeks ago. Since then, school bus safety has been a major topic for Governor DeWine and officials across the state. Governor DeWine has since created the Ohio School Bus Safety Working Group, a 13-member group tasked with examining school transportation safety and then possibly making recommendations to the Governor and the State legislature.

The School Bus Safety Group met for the first time this week and will continue to meet regularly before the end of the year. Joe Rugola, OAPSE’s Executive Director, will be presenting to this group in a future meeting to make sure OAPSE members’ interests are heard and included in the overall discussion.

OAPSE’s State President, Lois Carson, will be forming an OAPSE Transportation Safety Committee that will consist of members with student transportation experience. This Committee will be chaired by State Vice President Mike Lang, who also serves as Chair of OAPSE’s School Safety Committee. Other members on OAPSE’s Transportation Safety Committee will be Bev Payne from Crestline Exempted Village Schools, Stephanie Wiley from Columbus City Schools, John Sindeldecker from Buckeye Local Schools, Kathy Chamberlain from Preble-Shawnee Local Schools, and OAPSE Executive Director Joe Rugola. President Carson will also serve on the committee. The committee will be staffed by Political and Legislative Director Randy Weston. He will be covering the State’s working group meetings and reviewing any information put out by Governor DeWine or the School Bus Safety Working Group to make sure OAPSE members are kept up to date as these discussions move forward.