July 2022 Ohio Schools
- COVER STORY: Award-winning art for 24th Annual Create a Cover Contest highlights what Ohio’s students love most about their schools
- SUBJECT MATTER
- OEA marks 175 years as the Voice for Public School Educators and Students
- FEATURE
- Direct Conversation
- Retirement System Update
- Political Action
Moved recently? Contact the OEA Member Hotline to update the address on file at 1-844-OEA-Info (1-844-632-4636) or email, membership@ohea.org. Representatives are available Monday-Friday, from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. | OhioSchools — Past Issues
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April – May 2022 Ohio Schools
- COVER STORY: Prioritizing Student Health – When COVID-19 threatened those under his care, district school nurse David Pryer made sure Allen East students, teachers, and staff could return to school safely
- MAKING THE GRADE
- Oberlin’s Kurt Russell Named Finalist for 2022 National Teacher of the Year
- Association
- OEA to Hold In-Person 2022 Spring Representative Assembly with Virtual Component on May 7
- Candidates of OEA Statewide Election
- Proposed Amendments to the OEA Amended and Restated Constitution and Bylaws Spring 2022
Moved recently? Contact the OEA Member Hotline to update the address on file at 1-844-OEA-Info (1-844-632-4636) or email, membership@ohea.org. Representatives are available Monday-Friday, from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. | OhioSchools — Past Issues
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February – March 2022 Ohio Schools
- COVER STORY: Pathways to Success – Educational Pathways program aims to set future teachers up for success.
- MAKING THE GRADE
- Ohio Paraprofessionals Honored as Ohio’s Nominees for National Recognizing Inspirational School Employees (RISE) Award
- OEA Members Recognized as Top NEA Cyber-lobbyists
- A Typical American Teacher’s Brain on Any Given School Day
- POLITICAL ACTION
- Biden Administration Delivers Results for Public Education and America in First Year
Moved recently? Contact the OEA Member Hotline to update the address on file at 1-844-OEA-Info (1-844-632-4636) or email, membership@ohea.org. Representatives are available Monday-Friday, from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. | OhioSchools — Past Issues
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December – January 2022 Ohio Schools
- COVER STORY: Stepping Up for Schools
- Educator voice key to successful school board races in Ohio
- NOTEBOOK
- OEA Local Associations Stand in solidarity for Members and Students
- MAKING THE GRADE
- Findlay Paraprofessionals Form OEA’s Newest Local Association
- OEA Members Receive Top Educator Awards from Martha Holden Jennings Foundation
Moved recently? Contact the OEA Member Hotline to update the address on file at 1-844-OEA-Info (1-844-632-4636) or email, membership@ohea.org. Representatives are available Monday-Friday, from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. | OhioSchools — Past Issues
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ESP Educator Voice Academy
Overview
In 2019, the NEA created the Educator Voice Academies (EVAs) to help build an understanding of opportunities within ESSA and the power of lifting and amplifying educator voices for state and local affiliate members. This effort was led by NEA Education Policy and Practice in partnership with NEA’s Center for Organizing, Center for Social Justice, Center for Advocacy, Center for Great Public Schools, and Center for Governance. The first cycle featured in-person learning opportunities that brought state and local teams together to brainstorm, collaborate, and create plans of action to help continue this work in their school communities. Ohio’s 2019 team chose to organize around improving our state’s school accountability system, and that work helped lead to the successful passage of HB 82, which eliminated the A-F school report card and instituted an OEA-sponsored “student opportunity profile” which will be implemented after the 2022-23 school year.
After the success of the initial Educator Voice Academies, the NEA collectively and collaboratively sought to continue moving this work forward to leverage the voices of our members as partners in delivering equitable opportunities for all students across race, ZIP code, background, and ability. These efforts moved us into the next phase of our work: highlighting educator-created plans to improve public education focused on specific priority issues.
In 2022, OEA formed state Educator Voice Academy teams to address issues related to Teacher Recruitment & Retention and Social & Emotional Learning. From that process, OEA has laid out a comprehensive set of recommendations for addressing the growing educator shortage crisis. (Click here for details.) One of the signature recommendations of the team working on the teacher shortage was establishing a new team to focus specifically on the need to recruit and retain education support professionals (ESPs) in Ohio’s public schools. Acute shortages of bus drivers, paraprofessionals, cafeteria workers, school secretaries, and other essential workers have significantly disrupted student learning, strained school working conditions, and highlighted the need to invest in our ESPs. The OEA Educator Voice Academy cadre for Education Support Professionals will develop advocacy and organizing strategies to ensure every student in Ohio is served by caring, qualified support professionals who are respected, given the resources they need to be successful, and reflect the diversity of our population.
Process
OEA is currently building a team of ESP members from a diverse mix of races, genders, job classifications, experience levels, and education settings from across Ohio. Applications may be submitted using the form linked on this page. This Educator Voice Academy team will be facilitated by an OEA officer with support OEA staff and will draw on resources from NEA. The schedule and format of meetings will be determined by the team, but it will involve a combination of virtual and in-person meetings held between January and the summer of 2023. Members will not be required to meet during normal working hours.
OEA Member Resource Guide 2017
Use this guide as an overview to help you make the most of your OEA Membership. Within, you’ll learn more about:
- Ways to Become Involved
- Fighting for Public Education
- OEA Staff, Leadership, and Board of Directors
- OEA Higher Education Benefit
- Awards and Scholarships
- Valuable NEA Member Benefits and Services
Throughout our more than 150-year history, OEA members have been involved in every struggle and effort to advance the finest of America’s dreams: a quality public education for every child.
If you have additional questions, contact us at 1-844-OEA-Info (1-844-632-4636) or send us an email to: membership@ohea.org.
Moved recently? Contact the OEA Member Hotline to update the address on file at 1-844-OEA-Info (1-844-632-4636) or email, membership@ohea.org. Representatives are available Monday-Friday, from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. | OhioSchools — Past Issues
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Members Only
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Once a Union is Formed
Negotiating a Contract
Once the company recognizes the union (via card check) or the union wins an NLRB election, the company and union must negotiate a contract which spells out terms of employment for those workers eligible for the contract. Usually, the union bargaining team is com-posed of leaders from the organizing commit-tee and union representatives familiar with contracts and bargaining.
Negotiating a contract is referred to as collective bargaining. When relations between unions and management are decent, contracts can usually be agreed to in a relatively short period of time – a few days, a few weeks or at most, a few months. Negotiations that drag on longer than a few months usually do so because a company does not want a contract. Unfortunately, 32 percent of workers in the U.S. who vote for a union for the first time never get a contract.
Enforcing the Contract
A union contract sets forth the terms of employment and a grievance mechanism for dealing with disagreements. A shop steward is the person who assists workers in filing grievances and using the grievance process. The union has a legal obligation to assist workers in the process. A shop steward is usually a worker who has special training in understanding the contract.
Renewing the Contract
Because contracts are for specific periods of time, such as one year or three years, the contract will “come up for renewal.” For most union-management relations, this is a fairly straightforward process. In other situations, it can become contentious.
The traditional way for workers to exercise pressure on a company is to go on strike. This is almost always a last resort for because it is so hard on their families.
Your Right to Organize
The right to have a union, support a union, and engage in union activity is protected by State and Federal law. It is illegal for management to harass, intimidate, punish, or fire anyone for exercising your legally protected right to organize.
From Ohio Revised Code, Section 4117.03 – Rights of public employees:
- Public employees have the right to:
- Form, join, assist, or participate in, or refrain from forming, joining, assisting, or participating in, except as otherwise provided in Chapter 4117. of the Revised Code, any employee organization of their own choosing;
- Engage in other concerted activities for the purpose of collective bargaining or other mutual aid and protection;
From Ohio Revised Code, Section 4117.11 – Unfair Labor Practice:
- It is an unfair labor practice for a public employer, its agents, or representatives to:
- Interfere with, restrain, or coerce employees in the exercise of the rights guaranteed in Chapter 4117. of the Revised Code or an employee organization in the selection of its representative for the purposes of collective bargaining or the adjustment of grievances;
- Initiate, create, dominate, or interfere with the formation or administration of any employee organization, or contribute financial or other support to it; except that a public employer may permit employees to confer with it during working hours without loss of time or pay, permit the exclusive representative to use the facilities of the public employer for membership or other meetings, or permit the exclusive representative to use the internal mail system or other internal communications system;
- Discriminate in regard to hire or tenure of employment or any term or condition of employment on the basis of the exercise of rights guaranteed by Chapter 4117. of the Revised Code. Nothing precludes any employer from making and enforcing an agreement pursuant to division (C) of section 4117.09 of the Revised Code.
- Discharge or otherwise discriminate against an employee because he has filed charges or given testimony under Chapter 4117 of the Revised Code
Tools to Assist Local Presidents
A variety of tools are available to local association presidents to help them carry out leadership functions and to familiarize them with OEA operations and services. The following tools are available from the specified OEA departments listed below. Regular communications to presidents are available in the President’s section of the OEA website. Presidents can obtain any information listed by writing the appropriate department at the Ohio Education Association, 225 E. Broad St., Box 2550, Columbus, OH 43216.
OEA Executive Offices
Member mailing lists/labels
Presidents may request mailing lists or labels of OEA members in their own local association to be used for official OEA business. Presidents may also request a mailing list for their local association’s use to promote communication with their legislative representatives. In no case shall these mailings be used in such a way as to give or imply OEA endorsement of a candidate.
Delegate mailing lists/labels
A local association president may receive, upon written request, a list of names and addresses of OEA delegates or a set of mailing labels if that local association is supporting a candidate for OEA office or wishes to inform delegates of the local’s position on an OEA Constitution or Bylaws amendment. Such lists or labels shall be provided in accordance with OEA policy.
Board of Directors minutes
Any affiliate local president, upon request to be made annually, shall receive a copy of the OEA Board of Directors minutes.
Employee compensation benefits
Available to all local association presidents upon request.
OEA Business Services
- OEA Budget and Financial Highlights, including the Audited Financial Statement
- Treasurer’s Handbook (automatically mailed to all treasurers in August)
- Status of local association dues obligations to OEA and NEA, including copies of billing statements
- Membership enrollment forms
- Copy of the local association’s constitution and bylaws sent to OEA
- InfOEA—a one-stop contact center—provides assistance to members with questions they may have. Typically, questions come from a local treasurer or a member with administrative responsibilities and may include inquiries about dues, billing issues and managing membership situations. All members are welcome to contact 1 844 OEA info (1 844 632 4636) or membership@ohea.org.
OEA Membership Specialists are available to assist or connect members to the appropriate staff person.
OEA General Counsel
- State Employment Relations Board decisions
- Manual for the conduct of local association elections and the ratification of collective bargaining agreements
OEA Program
OEA Program provides a wide range of services to Association members, including assistance in bargaining, grievance processing and arbitration, publications, professional development information, legal services, member representation, leadership development, training of local leaders, financial and educational research, internal and external communications, legal services, political action, education reform and innovation, crisis assistance, building strong locals and organizing new units.
Legal Services
- OEA-NEA Legal Services Program
- OEA-NEA Liability Protection Program
- OEA-NEA Attorney Referral Program
- Association Liability Program
- Extended liability protection for health care practitioners
- OEA-NEA Fidelity Bond
Education Policy Research and Member Advocacy
- Information about the teaching profession—preparation, licensure, entry-year, National Board Certification, Ohio’s Educator Standards Board and LPDCs
- Ohio’s Learning Standards and Third Grade Reading Guarantee
- Teacher and principal evaluation
- Information about Ohio’s definition of, and requirements for becoming highly qualified teachers and paraprofessionals
- Information about achievement gaps, tools for school improvement and the Ohio High School Transformation Initiative
- Information about IDEA and assistance with special education issues
- Information about ESSA, school improvement, professional development and other professional issues can be found on OEA’s website, ohea.org.
- Salary and fringe benefit provisions for teachers
- School district financial analyses
- Comparative data for school districts
- Standard rules for contract interpretation
- Bargainer’s Handbook
- Ohio Public Employee Collective Bargaining Act and the rules promulgated by the State Employment Relations Board
- Arbitration decisions on selected types of contract disputes and information on arbitrators
- Higher education salaries, workload and benefits and institutional financial analyses
- Health insurance and the Affordable Care Act
Government Relations
- OEA Lobby Day information is available at ohea.org/oea-lobby-day.
- The Ohio Legislative Directory
- OEA FUND fund raising materials and OEA-FCPE Constitution and Bylaws, screening, endorsement and campaigning guidelines
- OEA Legislative Watch
Communications and Marketing
- Pamphlets, brochures, booklets and information on NEA Member Benefits programs
OEA Strategic and workforce Planning
Human Resources
- OEA job descriptions
- OEA staff contracts/salaries