"Rally for Respect" is just around the corner. RSVP Today!!
The Rally for Respect is coming up quickly, and thanks to the hard work of OCSEA activists across the state, plans are falling into place for the big day. All OCSEA members and their supporters are being called to gather on the Ohio Statehouse West Lawn on Friday, June 17. This is their message:
- We worked and sacrificed for Ohio!
- We deserve to be paid!
- We know the State of Ohio has the funds to pay us!
Special guest speakers to help push that message include friends to workers and labor: AFSCME International President Lee Saunders, Congressman Tim Ryan, and Ohio AFL-CIO President Tim Burga. The many, many OCSEA public employee Faces and Voices of the pandemic will also be on hand to tell their stories as will other special guests.
Rally goers can begin arriving around 9 a.m., with the main program kicking off at 11 a.m. This rally will kick off a public demand by OCSEA members that the administration and their public employers finally give Ohio's public employees the respect they deserve for the pandemic and repay them for the sacrifices that public employee families have endured!
See below for how to support rally goers even if you're unable to attend.
Click below to RSVP and get more info at OCSEA.org/RallyForRespect. If you need transportation, indicate that on the electronic RSVP form and see below for the bus schedule and shuttle information.
SPREAD THE WORD:
Grab a bus! Grab a shuttle! And go Rally!
Live too far away? Get on board a bus in your region to come to the Ohio Statehouse for Rally Day. Six buses will start in Youngstown, Toledo, Strongsville, Cincinnati, Lucasville and Cambridge and will have multiple stops along the way. Taking the bus will make it easier for union activists around the state to join on Rally Day. Snacks and water will be provided. Click HERE for the bus schedule. If you haven’t already done so, please register for the event HERE, and if you plan on taking a bus, click YES on “need transportation accommodation.”
Plan on driving in? Parking is available at OCSEA Headquarters, and a shuttle will be provided downtown. Shuttles from the OCSEA parking lot will begin on Rally Day starting at 8 a.m. and will continue throughout the day until everyone is safely back to their vehicles in the afternoon.
Parking is also available for a fee in downtown Columbus. Click HERE for a list of parking garages downtown.
Can't attenD? Participate in "day of Rally" solidarity actions!
For many members it's not possible to take the day off work to attend a rally (for a variety of reasons, including lack of leave, staffing, mandation and more, and we get it). But that doesn’t mean that members can’t join together in solidarity to get the attention of the DeWine administration and its managers.
Can’t attend the rally? Join the Day of Rally Solidarity! On Rally Day, Friday, June 17, wear OCSEA attire or AFSCME green to show your union solidarity at workplace and out in your community. Some chapters are even providing green ribbons to wear, as able, in facilities that require uniforms. Contact chapter leaders about how you can participate! OCSEA retirees who can’t attend the rally are also being asked to show their solidarity by wearing OCSEA attire or AFSCME green.
Members are also urged to put Solidarity Signs in car windows, on union bulletin boards, in union offices and in workspaces as appropriate (contact your chapter leaders about what's ok). Get your Day of Rally Solidarity Toolkit, which includes a flier and signs.
Whether at the rally or not, show your union pride on social media using the following hashtags: #RallyforRespect and #OCSEAStrong
Looking for more to do? There's some actions you can take right in your community and at your workplace to have your voice be heard. Some ideas include:
- Holding a rally or informational picket in your community.
- Writing a letter-to-the editor to your local paper about your personal struggles during the pandemic.
- Talking to elected officials about your struggles and invite them to your workplace.
- Attending an upcoming OCSEA Leadership training and/or Steward training.
- Writing a letter to Gov. DeWine demanding compensation for the pandemic. Get started HERE.
- Continuing to hold management accountable and fighting to protect the union contract.