As a mother of three daughters and a lifelong Ohioan, I am very pleased that Ohio is pursuing collective bargaining reform, which will not only save tax dollars and help our local governments maintain high-quality services, but it will also improve schools for our children. Through Senate Bill 5, we took an unprecedented step toward modernizing Ohio’s education system and giving our future workforce a competitive edge.

The most important factor of our students’ success is staffing our schools with talented teachers. This legislation ensures that our students are being taught by the best teachers by permitting school districts to consider the performance of teachers when hiring and determining pay scales—rather than only considering seniority. While seniority may still be a factor in these decisions, it will no longer be the sole determinant of an educator’s merit.

Most importantly, school districts have the flexibility to appropriately negotiate teacher salaries and benefits. This will help to save the districts money and help to avoid mass layoffs when districts simply cannot afford the pricy terms of union contracts.

My top priorities as a state representative are protecting jobs, reducing the size and spending of government, as well as providing a quality education for our children. Senate Bill 5 accomplishes ALL of these objectives and is a vital first step toward a more competitive state economy.