Voters Guide - State Issue 2

ISSUE 2: REFERENDUM ON LEGISLATION RELATIVE TO GOVERNMENT UNION CONTRACTS AND OTHER GOVERNMENT EMPLOYMENT CONTRACTS AND POLICIES

(A referendum on Am. Sub. SB 5)

A YES vote means approval of SB 5.

A NO vote means disapproval of SB 5. 

A majority YES vote is required for SB5 to become effective.

If approved, the provisions of SB 5 will take effect immediately after the election.

 

League of Women Voters Explanation of Issue 2: Approval of SB 5 changes laws concerning public employees, in particular teachers, firefighters and police. Major changes affect collective bargaining rights, salary schedules and compensation, layoff procedures, and leave. For example, approval would:  prohibit public employees from striking; eliminate binding arbitration as a way to settle contract disputes for safety forces; require performance–based pay for teachers; provide a minimum that public employees must pay for pensions and health insurance; allow the governing body (public employer) to impose its own last offer to settle a contract dispute.

 Proponents of SB 5 argue that:

1. Schools and local governments need to reduce costs to balance their budgets. They must have the right to reject unaffordable government employment contracts. 2. Government employees should pay a larger portion of the cost of health insurance and retirement plans in an amount closer to that paid by private sector employees. 3. Seniority-based layoffs for teachers often force the best teachers to be laid off first.

Opponents of SB 5 argue that:

1. Public employees should have ights to protect themselves in the workplace. For example, police and firefighters should be able to negotiate for critical safety equipment. Nurses should be able to demand reasonable staffing levels in hospitals.2. The budget shouldn’t be balanced by requiring additional sacrifices by Ohio’s public employees who have already made over $350 million in concessions. Corporations should give up their tax breaks. 3. Teachers, nurses and firefighters did not cause Ohio’s budget problems.

Websites

In support of SB 5: Building A Better Ohio http://betterohio.org/

In opposition to SB 5: We Are Ohio http://weareohio.com

Read More on Voters Guide
Volume 4, Issue 10, Posted 10:53 PM, 10.02.2011