COLUMBUS, Ohio – August 5, 2022 – Members of the Columbus Education Association (CEA) met last evening for an update from their bargaining team. The meeting culminated with CEA voting overwhelmingly to issue a 10-day strike notice.
“The vote tonight is a vote of confidence in our bargaining team and our fight for the safe, properly maintained, fully resourced schools Columbus students deserve,” said Regina Fuentes, the CEA spokesperson.
CEA supports smaller class sizes, full-time Art, Music, and P.E. teachers at the elementary level, functional heating and air-conditioning in classrooms, necessary planning time at the elementary level, a cap on the number of class periods during the school day, and other working conditions that recruit and retain the best educators for our students.
Fuentes continued, “CEA has consistently maintained that we are fighting not just for CEA members, but for our students and community. That is why CEA will continue that fight until a fair agreement is reached for the schools Columbus students deserve.”
Under Ohio law, a public employee union like CEA is required to provide ten days advance notice of its intention to engage in “any picketing, striking, or other concerted refusal to work.” Now that CEA has voted to issue the Notice of Intent to Strike and Picket, CEA can file the 10-day notice with the State Employment Relations Board at any time. A strike could commence as soon as 10 days after filing.
Fuentes said, “Of course we don’t want to strike, but our students, teachers and community deserve a contract that supports and bolsters better learning conditions. Our vote tonight should send a strong message to the Board to return to the Bargaining table immediately.”
The CEA Master Agreement expires at midnight on August 21. The first teacher workday is Monday, August 22, and students are scheduled to return on the 24th.
For the latest information, like the CEA page on Facebook at ColumbusEA, follow @ColumbusEA on Twitter and on Instagram @ColumbusEA, and keep up with the conversation on social media with #ColumbusStudentsDeserve.
The Columbus Education Association is the union representing nearly 4,500 teachers, librarians, nurses, counselors, psychologists, and other education professionals in Columbus City Schools. The CEA-CCS Master Agreement expires at midnight on August 21. With negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement underway, members of the Columbus Education Association are fighting for the schools Columbus students deserve: safe, properly maintained, and fully resourced schools in every neighborhood.
