Thousands rally to save pensions at Ohio Statehouse
The passion from the crowd of thousands who traveled from all over the country was palpable as union workers descended on the
The massive crowd gathered for a rally ahead of a Friday hearing at the
But before the elected leaders take to the drawing board in hopes of crafting a bipartisan solution to protect pensions, those at risk of losing their livelihood and retirement made it a point to have their voices heard and blow off a little steam in the process.
Those in attendance said their elected officeholders have pushed this problem off for too long. Retirees spent years paying into multi-employer pension funds with the hope of having that money when they finish working. With the
Without new legislation, the
Speakers representing dozens of labor unions took the stage to draw attention to the crisis that impacts active workers and retirees.
“This is the people’s building,” said
Repeated chants of “Fix it!” rang through the crowd as speakers urged them on. Retired union workers and those planning for retirement called on
“This is not a bailout,” said
Brown proposed the Butch Lewis Act, which many in attendance supported, but it failed to get bipartisan support. That bill would have created a low-interest, 30-year federal loan to troubled pension plans, with no cuts to retiree benefits.
Field came in from
“People work for forty years to earn a pension and now its being taken away,” he said. “The companies that caused it had bailouts. The government fined those companies, kept the fine money and left us hanging.”
Numerous pension plans, including the massive Central States Teamsters Pension Plan, the United Mine Workers Pension Plan, the Ironworkers Local 17 Pension Plan and many others are currently on the brink of failure.
More than 300 multi-employer plans across the nation are in danger of failing.
The hearing at the
By the end of July, the committee will finish the hearings and move on to finding a solution, one that needs bipartisan support.
A solution must be approved by five out of eight members of each party on the committee and then pass both the House and the
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