Ohio Gov. John Kasich (R) has a dire warning about what could happen if his newly-passed law to weaken collective bargaining for public employee unions were to be repealed in a referendum in November: It would send a message to businesses that Ohio is “slow” and “heavy”, and too beholden to labor unions.
“If we don’t win this, the setback is how does Ohio get labeled in the minds of companies around this country,” Kasich told the Canton Repository. “Is it a slow heavy labor state? Which tends to scare decision makers, CEOs.
“It’s just important we win this. I mean if we don’t win, it it’ll be a setback to economic growth. But I think we’re going to win.”
The law has not actually taken effect, but was put on hold by the petition process that triggered the referendum for this November.
A survey three weeks ago from Public Policy Polling (D) for the referendum gave the rejection side a lead with 50%, against 39%.
Triggering a repeal referendum required organizers to collect signatures equal to just six percent of the total votes in the last gubernatorial election, with additional requirements that they be sufficiently spread out with at least three percent of the gubernatorial vote across at least half the counties in the state. That meant the threshold was 231,150 signatures — but organizers fired their opening political salvo by collecting four times as many, thus creating a greater base for the actual campaign.
