Wisconsin's Family Fight

The Duluth News Tribune reported, March 13: “Wisconsin’s protracted family fight over the budget and public employee unions moved to this Bayfield County town Saturday evening, as embattled Gov. Scott Walker spoke at an invitation-only event and was greeted by at least 2,000 angry protesters outside.”

One of the protest organizers, Scott Griffiths, told the Tribune: “The thing that really got me here is the disparity of wealth that has grown way too out of hand. This is not a Wisconsin thing. This is a global pandemic of wealth buying power.”

On Thursday Walker signed his budget repair bill. The bill applies directly only to state employees. It limits their collective bargaining “rights” to salaries only. Until now benefits, work rules and sick time was all on the table. It also required that state workers contribute 5% of their pay to their pension plan, and increased the contribution from 6% to 12.5% of the cost of their health insurance.

It also: allowed public employee the option to not join the union; ended the deduction of union dues from pay check and; required an annual recertification of the union.

The governor has made it clear the he intends to close $3.5 billion projected state deficit by reducing state aid to schools, counties and municipalities. His budget repair bill offers those the public employers to adopt the same measure with their public employee unions. He says these are the “tools” they need to balance their budgets. 

    

Since he signed the bill, 16 lawmakers are facing recall campaigns. The secretary of state is postponing publishing the law for ten days, the full amount of time allowed. New laws are normally published within 24 hours after they are signed and take effect after publication. Many believe the walkout by all fourteen Democratic senators and now the delayed publication of the law is a stalling tactic to allow public unions time to extend existing contracts.

Finally, a number of lawsuits have been filed challenging the constitutionality of bill.

Wisconsin is locked in a battle between public employee unions and its taxpayers.  Therein lays the irony of Mr. Griffiths’ statement to the Tribune. The median household income in the state is just over $50 thousand. The average Milwaukee Public School teacher’s annual compensation is just shy of $100 thousand and upon retiring enjoys guaranteed pension benefits with lump sum values in excess of $1 million (based on retiring at age 62 with a $40 thousand per year pension).

The rich in Wisconsin are the State’s public employees who buy political power through their unions. This battle isn’t about collective bargaining. It isn’t about contributions to benefits. It’s entirely about political power.