KIPP Columbus teachers, staff can hold union vote, national labor board tells school

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has denied KIPP Columbus' objections to a unionization drive by teachers and other staff, paving the way for a vote on the issue at the Northeast Side charter school.

The two sides must now meet to reach agreement on when the secret-ballot vote on whether to form a union will take place. The vote could be held this month.

The NLRB earlier this week rejected KIPP's complaint filed in November, which argued staff should not be eligible to organize under the federal agency’s jurisdiction. Attorneys for the charter school argued that because the school receives state funding, it should be considered a public-sector employer and should fall under the jurisdiction of Ohio's State Employment Relations Board (SERB).

The NLRB ruled that KIPP employees were private sector for the purpose of unionization, and an election will be held to vote on whether the staff should be represented by the Ohio Federation of Teachers (OFT).

More labor news: Columbus City Schools subs file for union

Teachers, social workers, paraprofessionals, intervention specialists and student life coordinators from KIPP’s primary, elementary, middle and high school are attempting to organize as the KIPP Columbus Alliance for Charter Teachers and Staff (KIPP Columbus ACTS) through OFT.

Zach Usmani, a social worker at KIPP and member of the organizing committee, said that teachers and other education professionals seeking to unionize knew the NLRB would decide in their favor.

“We knew this was a delay tactic to begin with, but we're glad to get this result,” Usmani said.

In November, 78% of KIPP Columbus' roughly 130-person staff signed union cards through the NLRB. KIPP Columbus hired the Vorys legal firm, which filed a legal challenge with the NLRB on Nov. 16, delaying a secret-ballot union election. In December, KIPP Columbus charter schools administration declined to voluntarily recognize KIPP Columbus ACTS.

KIPP Columbus is part of a national network of college preparatory schools, has about 2,000 students. Asked for comment on the NLRB decision, a KIPP spokesperson issued a statement saying the school was "proud of our innovative learning environment."

"We respect our colleagues' rights to join the OFT and equally respect the right to not join — both of these are protected through a fair election, which we support," the spokesman said. "Together with our valued teachers and staff our focus remains on our collective work in educating our students."

The spokesperson did not address questions about whether KIPP would request a review of the NLRB decision.

Labor organizers at KIPP have said that the school has engaged in unfair labor practices, and the OFT has filed several complaints against KIPP alleging they have engaged in a 'union-busting campaign' by bringing in anti-union consultants and eliminating positions.

School administration has previously said they are offering employees information about "what it could mean to join a union and what the collective bargaining process entails."

More: KIPP Columbus engaging in 'union-busting persuasion campaign,' union says

Usmani said he believed the tactics used by Columbus KIPP have increased faculty support for the unionization efforts.

“There are more people now who are seeing the stalling tactics, they're seeing the union busting,” Usmani said. “If they don't want us to have it that badly, this must be something that will be really powerful for us.”

KIPP Columbus began in 2008 as KIPP Journey Academy with 50 students in the fifth grade at a former Columbus City Schools building in Linden and has since expanded to its present 150-acre campus at 2900 Inspire Drive on the city's Northeast Side. That campus houses the KIPP Columbus Elementary, KIPP Columbus Primary, KIPP Columbus Middle, KIPP Columbus High, the KIPP Columbus Battelle Environmental Center, the KIPP Columbus Early Learning Center, and the KIPP Athletics & Wellness Complex.

If the KIPP Columbus' educators vote to unionize, it would be the 10th charter school to join the OFT. The other OFT unionized charter schools in Ohio are in the Cleveland area: Stepstone Academy in Cleveland, Menlo Park Academy in Cleveland, three schools in the Summit Academy chain (Parma, Painesville and Lorain) and four schools in the ACCEL charter chain.

@Colebehr_report

Cbehrens@dispatch.com

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: National labor board clears way for KIPP Columbus faculty union vote