Columbus, OH – The Buckeye Institute filed a lawsuit against the Ohio Association of Public School Employees (OAPSE) and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) for their refusal to stop taking money out of the paychecks of public employees who are not members of the government unions. The Buckeye Institute filed Chandler v. OAPSE in Stark County Court of Common Pleas on behalf of Kevin Chandler, Amy Clark, and Charles C. Perry, Jr.

“Since the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark ruling in Janus v. AFSCME, government unions have claimed that members can quit the union, but union officials will continue to take dues out of workers’ paychecks,” said Jay R. Carson, senior litigator at The Buckeye Institute and an attorney representing Buckeye’s three clients. “This is a bit like the ‘Hotel California,’ where you can check out, but you can never leave.”

As a bus driver for Perry Local Schools, Kevin Chandler ensures that the students who ride his bus arrive at school safely in the mornings and home again in the afternoons. Mr. Chandler does this job every weekday without fanfare and with little thanks. After a year in the government union, Mr. Chandler decided it wasn’t for him. On April 25, 2024, he resigned his membership in OAPSE and asked the union to stop taking money out of his paycheck. He heard nothing until September 2024, when the union informed Mr. Chandler that they recognized he had quit the union, but they would still take his money regardless. 

Amy Clark is a bus aide with Perry Local Schools, where she helps ensure that students are safe on the bus and that the bus driver can concentrate on the road. While unglamorous, Mrs. Clark’s job is vital to ensuring the bus driver is not distracted and that students arrive at school and back home again safely. After five years in the government union, Mrs. Clark quit OAPSE in August 2024, and as with Mr. Chandler, was informed in September 2024 that the union recognized she quit. Still, they would continue taking hard-earned money from Mrs. Clark’s paycheck.

Charles C. Perry, Jr. is a technician with the Stark Area Regional Transit Authority, where he ensures the city’s buses are safe, well-maintained, and properly running. Mr. Perry’s job ensures that thousands of Stark County residents safely get where they need to be, whether that be their job, home, place of worship, grocery store, school, or just an evening out at the movies. Disappointed with the government union’s political positions, Mr. Perry notified AFSCME on August 27, 2024, that he had resigned his membership. As with OAPSE, AFSCME officials refused to stop taking money from Mr. Perry’s paycheck until December 2024, even though they acknowledged that he was no longer a government union member. 

In Chandler v. OAPSE, The Buckeye Institute is asking the court to order the government unions to:

• Stop taking money out of Mr. Chandler and Mrs. Clark’s paychecks;
• Issue an injunction to prevent further union membership dues deductions from their paychecks; 
• Refund money taken from Mr. Chandler, Mrs. Clark, and Mr. Perry after they quit the government unions; 
• Award them costs and attorneys’ fees; and
• Declare whether SERB or Ohio courts have jurisdiction in union contract dispute cases.

Stay up-to-date on Chandler v. OAPSE at BuckeyeInstitute.org/ChandlervOAPSE.

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