Wisconsin Gov. Targets Union Bargaining
The AP reports:
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker said Friday he wants to end collective bargaining for nearly all public employees because the state is broke and there’s no point negotiating with the unions when there is nothing to offer.
Union leaders and Democrats, powerless to stop Walker’s plan from passing the Republican-controlled Legislature next week, were reeling. They blasted the proposal as a naked power grab that will gut Wisconsin’s deep organized labor tradition and result in layoffs that devastate the economy.
Walker, a Republican who took office in January, argued that his proposal is an alternative to ordering furlough days and laying off 12,000 state and local public employees over the next two years to balance a $3.6 billion budget shortfall.
“The state’s broke,” Walker said. “Local governments are broke. They don’t have anything to offer.”
Walker wants to remove all collective bargaining rights, except for salary, for roughly 175,000 public employees starting July 1. Any requests for a salary increase higher than the consumer price index would have to be approved by referendum.
Starting April 1, Walker wants to force state employees to contribute 5.8 percent of their salaries to cover pension costs and more than double their health insurance contributions. That would generate $30 million this fiscal year. Currently, most public workers don’t contribute anything to their pensions.
Walker said Friday that he updated emergency plans and alerted the National Guard just in case they are needed to ensure state services aren’t interrupted. His plan would remove collective bargaining rights for prison guards, but it would exempt local police and firefighters and the state patrol.
Walker spoke about his plan at a Capitol news conference under the watch of a heavier than usual police presence. Walker, standing in front of seven state representatives and Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch, said no one should be surprised by his proposal.
“Unless you were in a coma for the last two years, it was clear where I was headed,” Walker said.
He said he had no doubt the Legislature would pass the bill next week. Republican leaders have come out in support, but it’s not clear what changes may be needed to get the majority votes required to pass it in both the Senate and Assembly. Republicans have a 19-14 edge in the Senate and 60-38-1 in the Assembly.
