COLUMBUS – A federal mediator has asked Columbus City Schools officials and the union representing the district’s teachers and other employees to come back to the bargaining table Wednesday as the two sides try to stave off a potential strike.
Members of the Columbus Education Association, which represents nearly 4,500 teachers, librarians, nurses, and other staff last week authorized their union to file notice with the state of an intent to stage a work stoppage.
Talks between the union and the state’s largest school district have stalled over pay, health care coverage and other issues, including smaller class sizes, functional heating and air-conditioning in classrooms and a cap on the number of class periods during the school day,
Under Ohio law, a public employee union is required to provide 10 days advance notice of its intention to engage in “any picketing, striking, or other concerted refusal to work.”
The union can file the notice with the State Employment Relations Board any time following the vote and a strike could commence as soon as 10 days after filing if union members approve it.