Despite GOP concession, Ohio SB5 fight rages on

Associated Press

COLUMBUS

Republican state lawmakers in Ohio sifted through stacks of proposed changes to a bill that would reduce collective bargaining rights for state employees, as thousands of opponents geared up for demonstrations ahead of a likely vote next week.

Senate leadership set a Friday deadline for amendments, which were still being processed into the evening. All proposals came from Republicans, who control the chamber. It was unclear how many amendments were filed.

Democrats and union leaders say no amount of revisions could fix it.

The initial proposal would have banned all collective bargaining by the 40,000-plus unionized state workers. It imposes other limits on negotiations between police, firefighters, teachers and college and university staffs and their employers

Republican senators have agreed to modify the legislation to allow workers to negotiate on wages. The unions could not bargain for benefits, sick time, vacation or other conditions, and the bill would ban strikes for any public employee.

“You can’t tweak a bill that totally takes away collective bargaining rights for all public employees,“ said state Sen. Joe Schiavoni, a Democrat from Canfield.

“If it was a bill that was reasonable in the first place, and it really was an attempt to fix some of the inefficiencies with collective bargaining — that’s one thing. This is another thing.“

A state Senate panel is likely to vote on the legislation next week, and the Senate leadership has scheduled an additional session for next Thursday.