rally

SB5 Rally with Ted Strickland

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A great SB5 rally last night, put together by UAPA, with former Governor Ted Strickland as the headline speaker. Also speaking were teacher Maureen Reedy, firefighter Chris Zimmer and Mark Drum from the FOP. Here's some pictures and a video of Gov. Strickland's speech

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Top 3 Today

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Your top news stories for the day

  1. We Are Ohio Referendum Kickoff Rally
    It's where all the fun this weekend will be!
  2. WHAT PASSING THE BUCK LOOKS LIKE
    Maps of projected fiscal emergencies in Ohio School districts.
  3. Private school the daughters of Gov. John Kasich attend is closing because of budget problems
    Passed without comment.

    Have a great weekend. Share your rally pictures and stories on our Facebook page.

Top 3 Today

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The top 3 news stories for you today.

  1. Savings fostered by collective-bargaining law anything but a sure thing

The Administration uses fuzzy math to calculate savings from S.B.5 - savings that come out of paychecks in the form of eliminated step increases and increased health premium contributions. The Administration then claims the savings don't come from salaries.

"He can't have it both ways," said Dennis Willard, spokesman for We Are Ohio, the coalition pushing the November referendum, arguing that the governor cannot say there will not be pay cuts but at the same time promote the kind of savings that will come out of workers' paychecks.
  1. 1 signature vs. 3,000
Just two business days after Kasich signed SB 5, We Are Ohio was able to collect more than enough signatures to start the referendum process. Now we wait the ten business days to see if Secretary of State Husted will certify at least 1,000 valid signatures and if Attorney General DeWine will certify the proposed summary.
  1. Rally supports referendum on SB 5
DAYTON — More than 200 representatives from local unions, community and religious groups opposed to the passage of Senate Bill 5 gathered in the auditorium of Teamsters Local 957 Monday night to rally support for a referendum on the November ballot.

The rally was one of more than 1,000 labor events across the country commemorating the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. on April 4, 1968 in Memphis, Tenn., where he had gone to stand with striking sanitation workers.

Rallys around the State on Tuesday

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This week marks a critical turning point in the fight to protect not only our collective bargaining rights, but public education itself. On Tuesday, Governor Kasich will unveil details of his first two-year budget. Given a looming $8 billion deficit, cuts to K-12 public education and higher education are expected to be steep and painful. Furthermore, the governor has said that it include many "reforms," not the least of which will involve diverting taxpayer dollars to unproven charter schools and voucher programs that support private schools.

Against this backdrop, it is critically important that we have a huge turnout of members at Tuesday's "Stand Up for Ohio" rallies. Twelve such rallies will be held across the state, and the only one in Central will be held at Westerville Central High School (7118 Mount Royal Ave., Westerville) from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. (This marks a change in location from what had originally been planned for the Westerville Public Library.)

Please spread the word and encourage all of your fellow members, along with their families, friends, and supporters to be there with you. This rally will take place just blocks from Governor Kasich's home and will be a great message to send a loud and clear message, right in his backyard, that policies are wrong for the middle class, wrong for children, and wrong for the future of our state.

For those of you who live a distance away from Columbus, there are similar rallies taking place in the Dayton area (at the corner of Maple St. and E. National Rd. in Vandalia), in Portsmouth (at Shawnee State University), and in Mansfield (in the Main St. Town Square), all beginning at 5:00.

There is also a rally scheduled for next Saturday, March 19, on the square in downtown Newark at noon. (Arrive at 11:00.)

Also, please continue to contact your representatives by email and telephone.

Call 1-888-907-7309 or the Direct line listed below to let your representative in the House hear from you on why SB 5 needs to be stopped.