COLUMBUS, Ohio – August 11, 2022 – The Columbus Education Association (CEA) filed its Notice of Intent to Strike and Picket with the State Employment Relations Board today, indicating a strike could commence at 12:01 AM on August 22 if the parties don’t reach agreement on their contract. At issue is disagreement over learning conditions such as smaller class sizes, full-time Art, Music, and P.E. teachers at the elementary level, and functional heating and air-conditioning in classrooms, as well as adequate planning time, a cap on the number of class periods during the school day, outsourcing positions to private, for-profit corporations from outside the community, and recruiting and retaining the best educators for Columbus students.
CEA Spokesperson Regina Fuentes said, “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.” She continued, “Our educators, students and the entire community deserve a fair contract for CEA.”
After walking away from negotiations on July 28, the Board and CEA returned to the bargaining table on August 10, at the request of the Federal Mediator. Despite CEA providing a comprehensive counterproposal on all outstanding non-economic items, the Board not only failed to respond to CEA’s proposal, they failed to offer CEA any proposals during the August 10 negotiations.
Education First Credit Union has been selected as the strike loan provider for members of the CEA. Education First has been devoted to serving educators since 1936 and will offer Conflict Assistance Loans at a low interest rate with flexible repayment terms should a strike occur.
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.
