Full Details Released for the 
Ohio Conference Annual Meeting

February 03, 2012 

The Ohio Conference AAUP will host its Annual Meeting on Friday, April 13 and Saturday, April 14 at the Columbus Marriott Northwest. Please note that this is a different location from previous years.

The Annual Meeting is a unique opportunity for Ohio AAUP members to gather, share information, and determine the direction and policies of the organization. 

The agenda, registration form, and hotel information can be found on our website at www.ocaaup.org/annualmeeting.

The registration deadline is April 2, and hotel reservations must be made by March 23 in order to receive the block room rate. 

Mark your calendars and register today!

Nominations for Trustee Elections Closed;
Candidates Announced

Nominations for the 2012 Ohio Conference Board of Trustees elections are now closed. The Ohio Conference Nominations Committee is pleased to announce the following candidates for the positions up for election this year:

President
John Cuppoletti, University of Cincinnati
John McNay, University of Cincinnati

Secretary
Clayton Rosati, Bowling Green State University

At-Large Member – Private Institutions
Bob Kolesar, John Carroll University

Chair of Committee on Organizing 
Rudy Fichtenbaum, Wright State University

Chair of Committee on Two-Year Institutions
Heather Howley, University of Akron, Wayne College

Chair of Committee on Private Institutions
Nancy Bertaux, Xavier University

Coming soon to the OCAAUP website will be a statement from each candidate and complete information on how and when voting will occur.

Full Details Released for the 
Ohio Conference Annual Meeting

February 03, 2012 

The Ohio Conference AAUP will host its Annual Meeting on Friday, April 13 and Saturday, April 14 at the Columbus Marriott Northwest. Please note that this is a different location from previous years.

The Annual Meeting is a unique opportunity for Ohio AAUP members to gather, share information, and determine the direction and policies of the organization. 

The agenda, registration form, and hotel information can be found on our website at www.ocaaup.org/annualmeeting.

The registration deadline is April 2, and hotel reservations must be made by March 23 in order to receive the block room rate. 

Mark your calendars and register today!

Nominations for Trustee Elections Closed;
Candidates Announced

Nominations for the 2012 Ohio Conference Board of Trustees elections are now closed. The Ohio Conference Nominations Committee is pleased to announce the following candidates for the positions up for election this year:

President
John Cuppoletti, University of Cincinnati
John McNay, University of Cincinnati

Secretary
Clayton Rosati, Bowling Green State University

At-Large Member – Private Institutions
Bob Kolesar, John Carroll University

Chair of Committee on Organizing 
Rudy Fichtenbaum, Wright State University

Chair of Committee on Two-Year Institutions
Heather Howley, University of Akron, Wayne College

Chair of Committee on Private Institutions
Nancy Bertaux, Xavier University

Coming soon to the OCAAUP website will be a statement from each candidate and complete information on how and when voting will occur.

Wright State University-AAUP to Host Panel Discussion with Union Leaders

January 20, 2012 

The Wright State University-AAUP will be hosting a panel discussion with union leaders from the AAUP, Communication Workers of America, Ohio Federation of Teachers, and Ohio Association of Professional Firefighters on Tuesday, January 31 at 7:00 pm in the Apollo Room of the Wright State University Student Union. 

The panel will be discussing the future of the We Are Ohio coalition and union rights in the State of Ohio. It promises to be a unique, exciting, and informative event. Mark your calendar!

New Year, New Attacks

January 10, 2012 

Despite the overwhelming rejection of Issue 2 in Ohio, and the fact that voters in Wisconsin may very well be on their way to recalling Gov. Scott Walker as a result of his anti-union policies, extreme politicians around the country are continuing to push legislation that would make unions weak to obsolete.

On January 5, state legislators in North Carolina overrode a veto by Gov. Perdue to push through Senate Bill 727, legislation that prohibits the North Carolina Association of Educators (NCAE) from automatically deducting dues from their paychecks. 

The bill was viewed as a transparent attempt to curb the power of the NCAE, which has traditionally supported Democratic candidates.In a statement, Gov. Perdue lamented, “I am saddened for the people of North Carolina that the Republicans abused their power and chose this destructive path.”Moreover, in Indiana, Republicans introduced so-called “right-to-work” legislation, which would ban contracts that require employees to pay union dues.

A January 7, 2012 editorial of the New York Times stated, “There is little doubt that politics is also behind the Republicans’ push for right-to-work laws: they see an opportunity to further weaken unions, which are far more likely to support Democrats – as well as health care reform and a higher minimum wage – by slashing their funding and their donating power.” 

The Times article noted that the ultra-conservative, corporate-financed American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) has assisted Republicans around the country to push right-to-work as well as voter suppression bills. Groups like the Chamber of Commerce have also supported this kind of anti-union agenda.

Furthermore, despite the fact that Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine rejected petition language to put a right-to-work constitutional amendment on Ohio’s 2012 ballot, it is almost certain that the group spearheading the effort, 1851 Center for Constitutional Law, will resubmit language that ultimately will be accepted. 

While right-to-work laws have been applied differently in different states, the proposed constitutional amendment in Ohio would likely apply to both private and public sector unions.Ohioans sent a strong message by rejecting Issue 2 by an overwhelming 61 percent, but right-wing extremists have not received the memo. It may take defeating another ballot issue and voting out the anti-worker politicians in the 2012 elections before we see cooperative solutions instead of partisan attacks.

Mark Your Calendar for the  Ohio Conference Annual Meeting The Ohio Conference AAUP will host its Annual Meeting Friday, April 13 – Saturday, April 14 in Columbus. The Annual Meeting is a unique opportunity for Ohio AAUP members to gather, share information, and determine the direction and policies of the organization. An agenda and registration form will be available on our website soon.

Reminder: Call for Nominations to Serve on the Ohio Conference Board of Trustees

The Ohio Conference is seeking nominations for its upcoming Board of Trustees’ elections.

The positions of President, Secretary, At-Large Member – Private Institutions, Chair of the Committee on Organizing, Chair of the Committee on Two-Year Institutions, and Chair of the Committee on Private Institutions are to be elected in 2012.

Nominations will close on January 30.

For more information on how to nominate yourself or a colleague, please click here.

What’s going to happen to my STRS pension? (and other OCAAUP news)

November 30, 2011 

What’s going to happen to my pension?

Over the past year, the Ohio Conference has reported on potential changes to the STRS and other statewide pension systems that are being considered by the Ohio General Assembly via the Ohio Retirement Study Council (ORSC).

Early on in this year’s legislative session, two pieces of legislation were introduced – House Bill 69 (Wachtmann) and Senate Bill 3 (Faber) – that, if passed, would have made changes to the five statewide pension systems.

Ohio requires public retirement systems to have a “30-year funding period,” which means that the system must be able to pay off all pension obligations within a 30-year period. Reforms to the pension systems are being considered to ensure that the retirement systems are meeting this mandated fiduciary responsibility.

At this time, it is uncertain what reforms may be enacted, but changes could include: increasing the number of years needed for retirement; requiring additional employee contributions; or reducing benefits.

Sen. Keith Faber, sponsor of SB 3 and Chair of the ORSC, announced in June that he wanted to bring in an independent actuary/policy advisor to provide an objective perspective and analysis to Ohio’s pension reform process.

Just days ago at its November 16 meeting, following a request for proposals and screening process, the ORSC unanimously selected Pension Trustee Advisors (PTA) to conduct the independent actuarial review. PTA is expected to complete their work by July 2012. 

Because of the complexity of the issue, it is most likely that we will not see serious movement on pension reform until late next year (2012), after the PTA report is issued and studied. And since legislators will be focused on their re-election bids throughout the calendar year 2012, it is very possible that pension reform may not be taken up at all until early 2013.

The Ohio Conference will continue to provide updates on this issue as events unfold.

We Won on Issue 2, Now What? The fight for fairness in Ohio is hardly over.  Two days after Ohioans overwhelmingly voted in favor of collective bargaining rights for public employees, a group of Tea Party activists known as the 1851 Center for Constitutional Law filed an initial petition with the Ohio Attorney General to put a constitutional amendment on the November 2012 ballot that would make Ohio a so-called “Right to Work” state. Opponents of Right to Work more aptly refer to it as “Right to Freeload” and “Right to Work for Less,” since these laws prohibit agreements that require workers to pay fair share fees and promote lower wages. However, on November 22, Attorney General Mike DeWine announced the rejection of the initial petition on the grounds that it did not properly characterize legal remedies under the proposed amendment. Nevertheless, it is expected that the group will resubmit a new petition with revised language to the Attorney General in the near future. The We Are Ohio coalition, the bipartisan group that fought against Issue 2, plans to remain together to fight back against these kinds of unfair, partisan attacks on workers’ rights. The Ohio Conference AAUP will continue to be part of this coalition moving forward and provide updates to our members on further developments.

Reminder: Call for Nominations to Serve on the Ohio Conference Board of Trustees

The Ohio Conference is seeking nominations for its upcoming Board of Trustees’ elections.

The positions of President, Secretary, At-Large Member – Private Institutions, Chair of the Committee on Organizing, Chair of the Committee on Two-Year Institutions, and Chair of the Committee on Private Institutions are to be elected in 2012.

For more information on how to nominate yourself or a colleague, please click here.