A MESSAGE FROM EDDIE L. PARKS
A MESSAGE FROM KATHY STEWART
MEMBERS FIRST
Members first. These are the two words that guide my actions each and every day as President of OCSEA. And there has never been a more critical time in our membership history than today because of Senate Bill 5, the law designed to effectively take away your rights to collectively bargain, speak up about safety issues in the workplace and to be paid a fair wage for your dedication and hard work.
My main concern these past few months has been to ensure that you can continue to provide a vital service to all Ohioans and that in return your pay and benefits are protected.
WHY EDDIE L. PARKS IS RUNNING FOR REELECTION
Before we get into SB 5, I want to talk to you about why I am running again and why I am asking you for your vote. See, I think it is important to ask for your vote because I know your vote means you believe I am going to work every day on your behalf. I have been humbled and honored by the opportunity to serve you in the past four years and if you are kind and supportive enough to give me your vote, I promise I will come in every day and work for you.
I also believe I have demonstrated in the past four years that members come first. I'm also running because OCSEA has come a long way under my leadership in the past four years and I have plans to build and improve upon our progress to date. Serving members means continuing our leadership training academies. It means we march ahead to increase professionalism and productivity among our ranks and that we are able to sit down and talk through the balance between continuing to provide vital services to Ohioans, being compensated at appropriate levels for your hard work and making only the necessary shared sacrifices during these demanding economic times.
CONTINUITY OF LEADERSHIP
In these times when OCSEA members are under attack, it is important to have continuity of leadership. There's an old saying: You don't change horses in the middle of a stream. Well, we're in the midst of a raging river and in putting members first, I have taken the lead on the anti-SB 5 campaign. I understand the task at hand. And when you read what you and I have accomplished, I believe you will also clearly understand why now is not the time to change leadership at OCSEA. Too much is on the line. OCSEA needs someone who has been there, has organized the campaign to veto SB 5 and understands where we still need to go toward victory in November and in the years ahead.
FIGHTING BACK: OCSEA LEADS THE WAY
I am co-chairman of the We Are Ohio campaign because when we began organizing the anti-SB 5 effort it was clear that OCSEA, with your help and dedication, was already leading the way from day one.
OCSEA joined forces with OAPSE and Council 8 and started regional kickoff meetings to inform, educate and mobilize our members when SB 5 was only a nasty rumor. Our first regional kickoff was held in Dayton on Feb. 7, one day before SB 5 was formally introduced. While extreme politicians were ramming the legislation through and onto Gov. John Kasich's desk, OCSEA never stopped working.
With your help, we held regional kickoffs, we organized rallies at the Statehouse and around the state and the public responded to our message that working and middle class families were under attack, that workers' rights and safety were on the line, that jobs were at stake and communities at risk and that SB 5 is an unfair attack on hard working people.
At one point, OCSEA members were totally out from any coverage under the collective bargaining law. I went to work for you and worked with my legislative contacts to make sure that public employees were put back in the bill. I reminded everyone at the Statehouse that OCSEA members were problem solvers and we had collaborated, made hard choices and shared sacrifices to balance the state budget.
CO-CHAIRMAN OF WE ARE OHIO
Now, I am co-chairman of the We Are Ohio Executive Committee. I work each day to guide the campaign to repeal SB 5. With your relentless help and persistence, we have collected about 1.3 million signatures in about eight weeks and OCSEA once again led the way. Thank you.
I have been inspired by your hard work and creativity. OCSEA members have organized drive-thru signing events, stood in the rain, gone door-to-door and volunteered countless hours to gather signatures. I wish I could thank each and every one of you in person. Please understand my gratitude is endless for what you have done to ensure our members and other hard working Ohioans are not denied their rights or safety.
You have put members first and I will continue to put members first. Your efforts are unprecedented, but we're just beginning. This November, Ohioans will veto SB 5 and the OCSEA family will be there together.
OSCEA: OUR FUTURE
It is unfortunate that we are under attack when we have made so many strides in recent years toward improving working conditions, increasing professionalism and productivity while making shared sacrifices in these demanding economic times.
You should be proud of our achievements.
For example, during my presidency, with your help, we have created the Leadership Academy to improve the skill level across all operations at the chapter and district level. This has been a tremendous success with more than 1,000 members completing the two-part training program that has now become a model for all AFSCME affiliates throughout the United States. This demonstrates why we must be member-driven.
In the past two years, OCSEA leaders, activists and staff have worked together to build a stronger, more effective union. We are training stewards and we have removed barriers to create a member-driven union that is better prepared to meet your needs.
We have improved member services. We focus on large issues like winning arbitration to ensure corrections officers did not lose their time off compensation for Family and Medical Leave Act. At the same time, no detail is too small for our members like implementing a policy that OCSEA staff return all phone calls and respond to all emails within a 24-hour period.
OCSEA is member driven to improve the quality of work life. During my tenure as president, we have grown and will continue to increase membership. For example, we added 300 new customer service jobs at the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services. We also increased job security by reducing layoffs in the same department from the proposed 500 to only six.
This is only a small sample of what we have accomplished together. For more information on OCSEA, visit our website www.ocsea.org and if you want to know more about the We Are Ohio campaign that I am co-chairing please visit www.weareohio.com.
At the same time, there are challenges facing us like prison and state governmental privatization, SB 5, and other anti-worker proposals. I have demonstrated and proven my leadership on your behalf. I am confident we can work together to fight back against these anti-worker effforts.
OCSEA has a great future because we are blessed to have great people. I can't thank you enough for your commitment to excellence. Please place your trust in me. I ask for your vote for another four years as your president. Thank you.