Ohio Law Forces Statewide Merit Pay
A new law that limits collective bargaining for public workers in Ohio will fundamentally change the way teachers are paid in that state.
Senate Bill 5, signed into law by Ohio Gov. John Kasich March 31, limits collective bargaining for teachers, police officers, firefighters, and thousands of other public employees. This means that automatic pay raises for public school teachers would be illegal, effectively creating the first statewide merit-pay system in the country. The law is scheduled to go into effect by July 1, 2013.
While the law is expected to save the cash-strapped state millions of dollars, teachers aren't happy. Thousands of public employees, including many teachers, protested outside the