Ohio Federation Of Teachers

What Ohio Federation Of Teachers does

The Ohio Federation of Teachers (OFT) is a private non-profit state labor federation affiliated with the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and the AFL-CIO, headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. Founded in 1850, OFT operates as a coordinating body for 60 local unions representing approximately 20,000 active and retired public school teachers, charter school teachers, school support staff, higher education faculty and staff, library workers, social workers, and public employees across Ohio. The organization's core function is collective bargaining representation, legislative advocacy, and member services for its affiliated locals.

OFT's operations are organized around three pillars: (1) organizing and supporting new collective bargaining units — with 10+ union election victories since 2021 spanning libraries, charter schools, healthcare, and higher education; (2) legislative and political advocacy, including active opposition to Ohio bills (SB 1, HB 698, HB 719) and coordination with the OEA, OCAAUP, and the All In For Ohio Kids Coalition on school funding and pension issues; and (3) member benefits delivery through partnerships with Ursuline College and Virtual Education Software (graduate courses), Union Plus (insurance products), First Book (literacy), and AFT's Share My Lesson platform. The technology layer is modest: a website, SMS text messaging for member mobilization, social media accounts (@OFTunion on Instagram, Facebook, Bluesky, X), and the OFT Votes 2026 voter information platform.

OFT generates revenue primarily through membership dues and per-capita taxes from its 60 affiliated local unions, which are not publicly disclosed. The organization is member-governed, led by President Melissa Cropper (who also serves as Secretary-Treasurer of Ohio AFL-CIO), and operates with a lean staff of approximately 16 employees who provide federation-level coordination rather than direct bargaining at individual worksites. OFT's recent growth has been driven primarily by expansion into non-traditional education-adjacent workforces — particularly public library systems across central Ohio, charter school educators, and healthcare workers at organizations such as Equitas Health — positioning it as one of the more active state labor federations in the Midwest in terms of new unit organizing.

Name

Ohio Federation Of Teachers

Legal name

Ohio Federation of Teachers, AFT, AFL-CIO

Website

https://oh.aft.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1850

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Ohio Federation of Teachers is a state labor federation affiliated with AFT and AFL-CIO, coordinating 60 local unions representing approximately 20,000 Ohio public school teachers, charter school educators, higher education faculty, library workers, and public employees through collective bargaining, legislative advocacy, and organizing campaigns.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Columbus

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Union Membership Dues: OFT generates revenue through membership dues from its 60 local unions representing 20,000 active and retired public school teachers, charter school teachers, school support staff, higher education faculty and staff, and public employees.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Ohio Federation of Teachers (OFT) is a state federation of 60 local unions representing approximately 20,000 active and retired public school teachers, charter school teachers, school support staff, higher education faculty and staff, library workers, social workers, and public employees across Ohio. The organization provides collective bargaining representation, legislative advocacy at the state level, member benefits programs, professional development training, and voter engagement initiatives. OFT is affiliated with the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and AFL-CIO, drawing on national resources while operating autonomously in Ohio.

Product overview

The Ohio Federation of Teachers (OFT) is a labor union organization, not a technology product company. OFT operates as a state federation of local unions representing approximately 20,000 active and retired public school teachers, charter school teachers, school support staff, higher education faculty and staff, library workers, social workers, and public employees. The organization's core offerings center on union representation, collective bargaining advocacy, member benefits programs, legislative advocacy, professional development resources, and voter information services. The OFT website serves as an informational portal for members and the public, providing news, resources, legislative updates, and membership benefits access. Notable programs include the Share My Lesson educational resource platform, member benefits partnerships (hearing insurance, pet insurance, ID protection), professional development trainings, and the OFT Votes voter engagement initiative. The organization does not offer a software product, API, or technology platform in the traditional sense.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• 86% of Columbus Metropolitan Library workers voted to form their union
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• American Federation of Teachers (AFT)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOFT is affiliated with the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), a 1.7+ million member national union. AFT provides resources, political support, organizing assistance, and professional development programs to OFT and its local unions. AFT President Randi Weingarten has participated in Ohio union events.
• Ursuline CollegeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOFT partnered with Ursuline College and Virtual Education Software (VESi) to offer OFT members access to discounted online graduate courses available for graduate credit.
• Virtual Education Software (VESi)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOFT partnered with Virtual Education Software (VESi) and Ursuline College to offer OFT members access to discounted online graduate courses for professional development and graduate credit.
• First BookminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAFT has partnered with First Book to distribute books to educators and families, including 250,000 books in Ohio. OFT participates in AFT's Reading Opens the World initiative with First Book.
• Share My LessonminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOFT participates in Share My Lesson Ohio, a partnership providing educator resources and lesson plans to teachers. AFT's Share My Lesson platform provides Social Emotional Learning resources and professional development materials.
• Ohio AFL-CIOcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOFT is affiliated with the Ohio AFL-CIO and OFT President Melissa Cropper serves as Secretary-Treasurer of the Ohio AFL-CIO, coordinating labor movement activities across Ohio.
• Ohio Education Association (OEA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOFT works with OEA on legislative issues including the Fair School Funding Plan, SB 1 opposition, and the All In For Ohio Kids Coalition. The two unions collaborate on education policy advocacy.
• Ohio Conference of the American Association of University Professors (OCAAUP)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOFT works with OCAAUP on higher education issues including SB 1 opposition, collective bargaining rights for faculty, and academic freedom advocacy at Ohio's public colleges and universities.
• All In For Ohio Kids CoalitioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOFT participates in the All In For Ohio Kids Coalition, anchored by OEA, OFT, Ohio Association of Public School Employees, Ohio Organizing Collaborative, and Policy Matters Ohio, advocating for fair school funding.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• AFL-CIO Ohio: Ohio AFL-CIO is the state labor federation of which OFT is an affiliate. It coordinates labor movement activities across Ohio, of which OFT's President serves as Secretary-Treasurer. Provides broader labor context rather than competing for the same members.
• AFSCME Ohio Council 8: AFSCME Ohio Council 8 represents Ohio public employees including some workers potentially adjacent to OFT's social worker and public employee segments. Operates in similar labor relations space but focuses on state and local government employees outside education.

Direct peers

• Ohio Education Association (OEA): OEA is Ohio's other major teacher union and NEA state affiliate, representing approximately 120,000 Ohio educators. It is the most direct peer to OFT, competing for the same K-12 teacher members, coordinating on legislative advocacy, and sharing the Fair School Funding Plan coalition.
• Illinois Federation of Teachers (IFT): IFT is OFT's AFT sibling federation in Illinois, representing approximately 100,000 members. It mirrors OFT's structure (state federation, AFT affiliate, AFL-CIO affiliation) and faces similar challenges around higher education, charter schools, and public sector organizing.
• New York State United Teachers (NYSUT): NYSUT is another AFT state affiliate representing 600,000+ educators in New York. It is structurally identical to OFT as a state federation providing collective bargaining, legislative advocacy, and member benefits, though at much larger scale.
• California Federation of Teachers (CFT): CFT is AFT's California state affiliate with 120,000+ members across K-12, community college, and public employee locals. Comparable to OFT in organizational structure and segment mix, including higher education faculty and public sector workers.

Broad incumbents

• National Education Association (NEA): NEA is the nation's largest labor union with 3M+ members and the parent of OEA. It competes with AFT for teacher membership nationally and shapes the broader teacher union landscape that OFT operates within.
• American Federation of Teachers (AFT): AFT is OFT's national parent federation with 1.7M+ members. While not a direct competitor, it provides national resources, organizing assistance, professional development (Share My Lesson), and political infrastructure that shapes OFT's capabilities and strategic options.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/OFTunion
• Facebookfacebook.com/OFTunion
• Instagraminstagram.com/OFTunion
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ohio-federation-of-teachers

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Ohio Federation Of Teachers