AFSCME Applauds Favorable Decision in OCSEA's Suit Challenging the Closing of Lima Correctional Institution

AFSCME’s 1.6 million members provide the vital services that make America happen. With members in hundreds of different occupations – from nurses to corrections officers, child care providers to sanitation workers – AFSCME advocates for fairness in the workplace, excellence in public services and prosperity and opportunity for all working families.

The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), the parent union of the Ohio Civil Service Employees Association (OCSEA), today applauds the court decision to keep Lima Correctional Institution open. The Court of Common Pleas issued a permanent injunction against Ohio Governor Robert Taft, the Director of the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections and the Warden of the Lima Correctional Institution (LCI).

"The judge's decision shows that no one person, not even the governor, can usurp the authority of Ohio's General Assembly," said AFSCME President Gerald W. McEntee. "Judge Richard Warren's ruling sends a message not only to Ohio, but to other governors as well, that they may not make unilateral decisions without regard for their state's constitutional powers."

OCSEA represents more than 375 employees at LCI and more than 10,000 corrections employees in Ohio.