Ohio Businesses Reject Anti-Worker Attacks, Stand with Public Service Workers
by Gonzalo Baeza | April 15, 2011
Ohio Gov. John Kasich’s heavy-handed tactics to destroy unions have progressively eroded his popular support. What he probably didn’t count on was that his anti-worker policies would end up alienating some of the very businesses that endorsed him as a candidate.
Witness Ohio’s Chamber of Commerce, whose members are breaking off over the organization’s endorsement of SB5, a bill to strip away the rights of nearly 365,000 public service workers in the state.
But just as some businesses begin to realize the implications of Kasich’s destructive agenda, many others are joining AFSCME’s Proud Ohio Workers program. The initiative was launched to help merchants across the state show that they recognize public employee support for their shops. Merchants can show their support for public employees in return by affixing a “Proud Ohio Workers” sticker to a window in the front of their store.
“The outpouring of support we’ve received from the business community shows the far-reaching consequences of these extreme proposals to cut worker’s rights, wages and benefits,” said Ohio Civil Services Association (OCSEA/AFSCME Local 11) President Eddie L. Parks. “In Ohio, businesses know Senate Bill 5 will have a direct impact on their bottom line and on the health of our local economies.”
As Talking Points Memo (TPM) reports, “more than 400 businesses across Ohio have signed up” and more are joining in each day.
“Small businesses understand SB5 will lead to the elimination of lots of jobs in local communities,” AFSCME spokesperson Dennis Willard told TPM. “When that happens, because public sector jobs like all jobs drive the economy, these merchants are really concerned they’re going to lose business.”
Meanwhile, Secretary of State Jon Husted Friday certified that We Are Ohio, the group seeking a state referendum on SB 5, has met the initial 1,000-signature requirement on each of the two petitions they filed to qualify for the ballot in November. Join the fight to protect workers rights in Ohio and help gather the necessary signatures to put SB 5 on the ballot – and repeal it.
