The Ohio Federation of Teachers (OFT) is a statewide teachers union in Ohio affiliated with the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and, through the AFT, the AFL-CIO, both of which are organizations that wield significant power on the political left. OFT represents around 14,000 teachers and public school employees in Ohio and is significantly smaller than the larger teachers union in the state, the Ohio Education Association, which has over 120,000 members and is affiliated with the National Education Association. The OFT strongly supports Democratic candidates for public office, endorsing almost exclusively Democrats and supporting former Vice President Kamala Harris’s 2024 campaign for President. OFT president Melissa Cropper was outspoken in her opposition and criticism of President Donald Trump in the 2024 election and heaped criticism on then-U.S. Senator J.D. Vance (R-OH) during the campaign. 1 2 3 4
Background and History
The Ohio Federation of Teachers is state affiliate of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and, through the AFT, a member of the AFL-CIO labor federation. The OFT represents primary and secondary school teachers, college and university professors, adjuncts, graduate and student workers, and support staff. While the OFT website claims that it represents approximately 20,000 members, its actual number of members reported to the government in 2024 was 14,749, and its membership numbers have declined since the early 2000s. 5 6 7
The AFT established the OFT as the Ohio State Federation of Teachers as “their first experimental state federation in 1933” and the union was officially chartered in 1938. Many locals did not affiliate with the state organization until 1968, when the AFT began to require them to do so, and it was not until the 1970s that OFT locals gained collective bargaining powers. 6
According to Wayne State University, which houses the OFT’s archives: “Throughout its history, OFT has used collective bargaining, strikes, lobbying and testimony on legislation, and other efforts meet its goals. The OFT and its local affiliates have developed ways to assist teachers and improve retention that have been models for other states, particularly the Toledo Plan, Career in Teaching, and Peer Assistance and Review programs. Other issues the OFT addresses are teacher health and retirement benefits, pay, tenure, curriculum, school budget problems, and charter schools.” 6
The OFT website claims that 55 local unions are affiliated with the OFT. The most notable locals under the OFT umbrella are the Cincinnati Federation of Teachers, the Cleveland Teachers Union, and the Toledo Federation of Teachers. The Cincinnati, Cleveland, and Toledo unions all also have retired teacher locals. Other locals within the OFT include the Belmont College Faculty Association, Buckeye Local Education Association, and Worthington Public Libraries United. 3
Political Activities
The Ohio Federation of Teachers strongly supports democratic candidates for public office, endorsing almost exclusively Democrats including then-U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH). It supported then-Vice President Kamala Harris’s 2024 campaign for President. 1 2
In 2024, OFT president Melissa Cropper wrote an op-ed titled “As a Rural Ohioan, I See J.D. Vance for Who He Is” in which she attacked Vance’s touting of his rural, working-class background, stating that “Vance’s career has been built on a phony image of him as a product of and de facto spokesperson for poor, rural Appalachians, despite the fact that he was raised in a middle-class family in Middletown, Ohio.” 2
References
- “Ohio Federation of Teachers Endorsements.” Blue Voter Guide. Accessed January 18, 2025. https://bluevoterguide.org/endorser-org/Ohio_Federation_of_Teachers_(OFT)/OH/3970
- Cropper, Melissa. “Melissa Cropper: As a Rural Ohioan, I See J.D. Vance for Who He Is.” Courier. August 9, 2024. Accessed January 17, 2025. https://couriernewsroom.com/news/melissa-cropper-as-a-rural-ohioan-i-see-j-d-vance-for-who-he-is/
- “About Us.” Ohio Federation of Teachers. Accessed January 18, 2025. https://www.oft-aft.org/about-us
- “About.” Ohio Education Association. Accessed January 18, 2025. https://ohea.org/about/
- “AFT State Federation 8033 Ohio.” Union Facts. Accessed January 18, 2025. https://www.unionfacts.com/lu/513310/AFT/8033#membership-tab
- “THE OHIO FEDERATION OF TEACHERS COLLECTION Papers, 1938-1987 (Predominantly 1972-1984).” Walter P. Reuther Library at Wayne State University. Accessed January 17, 2025. https://reuther.wayne.edu/files/LR001442.pdf
- AFT Ohio State Federation Designation Number 8033 (Labor Department File Number 513-310), Labor Organization Annual Report (Form LM-2), 2024, Item 20 https://olmsapps.dol.gov/query/orgReport.do?rptId=898218&rptForm=LM2Form