As I previously explained, Senate Bill 5 is not good for Ohio workers. Since then, with lots of gerrymandering and legislative shenanigans, an amended piece of legislation squeaked through the Ohio Senate on its way to the House.
But the Amended Senate Bill 5 isn’t any better.
There’s plenty of bad stuff in this legislation, even after the amendments. While I can go on forever detailing the list of horribles, I’ll limit my commentary to simply three items that demonstrate the mean spirited intent behind Amended Senate Bill 5.
First, seniority cannot be the determining factor when deciding the order of layoffs. So Senate Bill 5 would allow a public employer in Ohio to layoff an employee with twenty plus years of seniority and retain someone who was just hired. Is this good for Ohio workers?
Second, public employees cannot strike. The ultimate leverage that working people have to obtain fair working conditions is the withholding of labor. Amended Senate Bill 5 removes this leverage. Is this good for Ohio workers?
Third, if the parties are unable to reach agreement through dispute resolution procedures, the terms of a contract are determined by the public employer’s legislative body. That body would accept the employer’s or the employees’ final offer as the new contract. Which contract do you think the legislative body will accept? Take a wild guess. Is this good for Ohio workers?
Amended Senate Bill 5 is not better, is not improved, and most important, is not fair.
John Roca
Labor Attorney