Take Action Now – Some Lawmakers Want June 26 Vote on Senate Bill 83
Despite the massive opposition to Senate Bill 83, a small number of lawmakers continue to push the bill and are trying to pressure House Speaker Jason Stephens to hold a vote on the bill on June 26, what is expected to be the legislature’s last session date before summer recess.
We are asking our members and allies to fight back once again and encourage the House of Representatives to reject SB 83!
As a reminder, SB 83 passed the Ohio Senate in May 2023 and then passed the House Higher Education Committee in early December by an 8-7 vote. The bill has since lingered in the House Rules and Reference Committee, but Speaker Stephens has not brought it to the floor for a full vote of the House. The House committee passed version of SB 83 is still fraught with serious issues. While the current version removed the prohibition of faculty and employees to strike, the bill still contains provisions that cause serious concerns as it pertains to labor rights, job security, and academic freedom which have the potential to negatively impact the quality of higher education in Ohio.
In its current version, SB 83 eliminates the collective bargaining rights of higher education faculty members to bargain over certain working conditions. This includes prohibiting bargaining over faculty evaluations, tenure, and retrenchment (the process for reduction of force). This bill represents the largest attack on collective bargaining rights since Senate Bill 5 in 2011.
Additionally, SB 83 contains language that micromanages higher education classrooms and threatens academic freedoms on Ohio’s public university and college campuses. OEA believes that these policies are best developed locally by faculty and administration determining the systems that work best for their campuses, and not top-down state mandates.
We must stop Substitute Senate Bill 83! Email your Ohio House member and urge them to oppose Senate Bill 83!
