OCSEA is calling for an immediate meeting with the Ohio Dept. of Job and Family Services (ODJFS) and the Office of Collective Bargaining (OCB) regarding a recently proposed staffing change that could potentially impact hundreds of ODJFS union members who provide federal job services. The staffing change proposes moving work, now done by OCSEA members under the Wagner-Peyser Act, to an undefined “partnered local model.”

 

OCSEA is demanding that ODJFS and OCB sit down with union leaders to review the proposal and discuss its impact on state union employees as well as its compliance with the OCSEA collective bargaining agreement.

 

“OCSEA has serious concerns regarding the Department’s decision to communicate this initiative directly to bargaining unit employees without providing advance notice to OCSEA Headquarters. An initiative of this nature, particularly one involving potential changes to bargaining unit work, warrants prior communication and meaningful discussion with the union,” said OCSEA President Chris Mabe in a letter to ODJFS Director Matt Damschroder and to OCB.

 

Wagner-Peyser is a federally funded program providing labor exchange services in each state. Labor exchange services include job matching and placement for employers and Ohio job seekers, including our veterans. Currently these services are provided by highly qualified OCSEA union members within ODJFS’s Office of Workforce Development.

 

Until recently, federal rules required that states use state “merit staff” to provide Wagner-Peyser services. Merit staff under the Wagner-Peyser Act refers to a state government employee who is hired to perform delivery of public labor-exchange services.

 

Effective October 19, 2026, the Trump Administration’s U.S. Dept. of Labor (DOL) will remove the mandatory merit staff rule, a requirement that OCSEA has fought to protect for more than two decades. While the DOL says this is purely “voluntary” for states, the union is concerned that Ohio’s workforce development leaders are jumping at the opportunity to reduce union merit staff at the first sign of a lapse in the rule.

 

“Basically, this administration is asking for forgiveness instead of permission. And it’s a slap in the face to hard-working state union members who provide these services,” said OCSEA ODJFS Assembly President Damon Neal.

 

“What will happen to reemployment activities is anyone’s guess, and that’s a big concern. It hinges on where you live and what resources are available,” he said. Neal says the union will protect its members and the services they provide.

 

Stay tuned for updates on this issue in future emails and on the OCSEA website at OCSEA.org.