Thousands Protest Ohio Plan to Curtail Public Bargaining

A Republican-backed plan in Ohio to eliminate the collective-bargaining rights for state workers and to limit them for local government employees attracted thousands to the Statehouse in protest Tuesday, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reported on Wednesday.

State Sen. Kevin Bacon

Ohio joins a growing movement Republicans are pushing across the country to limit or get rid of public employees’ bargaining rights to balance state budgets. About 5,500 teachers, police officers, nurses, electricians, and other public employees from across the state went to the snowy capital to protest, the newspaper reported. They stood outside while a committee considering the bill heard testimony.

"It’s the American way,” Republican state Sen. Kevin Bacon said before the hearing before Senate Insurance, Commerce and Labor Committee he chairs. “If they have concerns, that’s fine. We have to go forward with some badly needed reform."

The committee didn’t vote after hearing from opponents and proponents of the bill. Another hearing is not scheduled yet.