The three-member State Employment Relations Board and its administrative staff were created by Ohio’s Public Employees’ Collective Bargaining Act of 1983. The Act was incorporated as Chapter 4117 of the Ohio Revised Code. Acting as a neutral, the quasi-judicial board determines appropriate bargaining units, conducts representation elections, certifies exclusive bargaining representatives, monitors and enforces statutory dispute procedures, adjudicates unfair labor practice charges, and determines unauthorized strikes. Board appointments are made by the governor with the advice and consent of the senate. A board member’s term is six years.

W. Craig Zimpher was appointed to the Board by Governor John R. Kasich effective January 21, 2011. Prior to his appointment, he had been Vice President for Government Affairs at Nationwide Insurance Enterprise.

Mr. Zimpher’s private-sector positions included service as Assistant V.P. of Ohio Operations for Gates, McDonald and Company and Assistant Dean of Students at Ohio Wesleyan University.

Mr. Zimpher’s previous public-sector work includes serving as Chairman of the Industrial Commission of Ohio; an appointment by Governor Richard F. Celeste to the Commission on Workers Compensation Administration; serving as Deputy Assistant to Governor James A. Rhodes and as Legislative Assistant to the Minority Leader of the Ohio House of Representatives. 

Mr. Zimpher, a native of Piqua, Ohio, received his B.A. and M.A. degrees in History from The Ohio State University. He served as a 1 st Lieutenant in the U.S. Army. He also lectured as an Adjunct Instructor in History/Humanities at Ohio Dominican University.

Robert F. Spada was appointed to the Board by Governor Ted Strickland on November 3, 2008. At the time of his appointment, Spada was serving in his 10th year in the Ohio Senate representing the 24th Senate District from Cuyahoga County.

He served two terms as Assistant Majority Floor Leader. His Committee assignments included Insurance, Commerce and Labor Committee and State and Local Government Committee, which he chaired. Mr. Spada was also a member of the Joint Committee on Agency Rule Review.

Other public and private sector work includes employment with the U.S. Department of Labor - Labor Management Services Administration, the U.S. Department of the Treasury - Internal Revenue Service, Willoughby South High School and as a partner in an accounting firm.

Mr. Spada, a Cleveland Native, received his BBA in Accounting from Cleveland State University, and an MBA in Systems Management from Baldwin Wallace College. He served in the U.S. Army as a Systems Analyst.

Governor Ted Strickland appointed N. Eugene Brundige to the State Employment Relations Board effective May 12, 2008. At the time of his appointment, Mr. Brundige was an arbitrator, mediator and labor relations consultant, serving on the following arbitration rosters: American Arbitration Association (Labor Panel), Federal Mediation and Conciliation Services, Arbitration Mediation Service, and SERB's Roster of Neutrals. In addition to 15 years as a mediator, Mr. Brundige served previously as Vice Chair of the State Employment Relations Board.

Mr. Brundige served as Chief Negotiator for the City of Columbus, Director of Classified Personnel for Columbus Public Schools, Chief Negotiator for the State of Ohio, and HR Chief for the Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation. He also served in a number of capacities within a statewide union, including President of the Ohio Education Association and Director of Uniserv, supervising 70 staff representatives. He worked on assignment for the National Education Association in Florida.

Mr. Brundige is a graduate of Ohio University, where he received his Bachelors Degree in History and Government and also earned a Masters Degree in Education Administration. He has also served as adjunct faculty at Columbus State Community College and The Ohio State University in various labor -management programs