State Senator Shannon Jones, introduced Senate Bill 5. To highlight a FEW aspects of SB 5, it eliminates or at best severely limits collective bargaining for all state workers, it bans public employee strikes, it weakens binding arbitration for public safety forces who cannot strike, it limits a local union's right to bargain for health insurance and it eliminates automatic pay increases for public employees. Jones and many other Republicans feel that our public employees should not have collective bargaining or union representation.

SB 5 is a political attack on the middle class and on Ohio families, and everyone --union represented or not, needs to call their state senator and demand that this attack on working people be stopped immediately. Our politicians promise to help Ohio families, not destroy their livelihoods. Our elected representatives are trying to reduce the Ohio budget deficit on the backs of the middle class and we need to let them know we will not stand for it. When will our they give up their wages, pensions and benefits as they have repeatedly expected the working class people that they represent to do?

I am not a public employee union member, but this bill is only the beginning and next will be the private employee unions. This bill adversely affects ALL working people and their families. I strongly encourage you to call your state senator and let them know you will not stand for their demonization of working people anymore. Tell them NOT to support SB 5.

 Nick Gallogly, Grafton

Editor's note: Nick Gallogly is the Chairman /Unit 1 of the U.A.W. 2000, which provides labor for Avon Lake's Ohio Assembly Plant (Ford Motor Co.)