Ohio Unions Rally to Defend Workers' Comp Via NY Transfer News Collective * All the News that Doesn't Fit ------------------------- Via Workers World News Service Reprinted from the October 30, 1997 issue of Workers World newspaper ------------------------- OHIO UNIONS RALLY TO DEFEND WORKERS' COMP By Martha Grevatt Cleveland "Vote no on Issue 2" was the message that rang out loud and clear at rallies in 11 Ohio cities on Oct. 16. The actions were called by the Coalition to Stop Corporate Attacks on Injured Workers. Issue 2, on the November ballot, is a vicious attack on workers who are injured on the job. If enacted, it would reduce benefits, make them harder to collect, and reduce the period of time a workers' compensation claim can remain open. The wording of Issue 2 contains 156 pages of take-away language. For example, it makes workers who suffer repetitive-motion injuries ineligible for compensation. It saves the corporations $200 million in premiums paid to the state fund. It even allows them to avoid paying premiums altogether if they "object on religious grounds." The attacks contained in Issue 2 were originally passed by the state legislature as SB 45. The actual language of SB 45 was not written by any legislator, but by corporate attorneys. Implementation of SB 45 was blocked by an initiative petition to put the measure on the November ballot. The petitions, which the labor movement circulated across the state, contained over 400,000 signatures. However, Secretary of State Bob Taft reworded the ballot language--to make it appear that a "yes" vote is merely a vote to eliminate fraud. Deceptive ads show people riding motorcycles and doing karate, supposedly while collecting workers' compensation benefits. The coalition, made up of labor leaders and injured workers' advocates, had to launch an all-out effort to counter this tricky campaign to gut workers' compensation in Ohio. The Oct. 16 rallies were a huge success. In Cleveland, Auto Workers Local 1250's hall was packed to overflowing. Speakers representing the Communications Workers, Government Employees and other unions were repeatedly interrupted by chants of "No, no, no." UAW Region 2 Director Warren Davis, a co-chair of the coalition, received a standing ovation when he called the bill "made in America corporate greed." Davis reported that even in the small Appalachian town of Portsmouth, 100 people had rallied against it. The coalition's work has had an impact. Initial polls showed Issue 2 passing two to one--but the latest polls show it has a 50-50 chance of being defeated. - END - (Copyright Workers World Service: Permission to reprint granted if source is cited. For more information contact Workers World, 55 W. 17 St., NY, NY 10011; via e-mail: ww@workers.org. For subscription info send message to: info@workers.org. Web: http://workers.org) ================================================================= NY Transfer News Collective * A Service of Blythe Systems Since 1985 - Information for the Rest of Us 339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012 http://www.blythe.org e-mail: nyt@blythe.org ================================================================= nytlab-10.24.97-23:10:40-11905