This week in Wisconsin, conservatives are making perhaps the single biggest assault on collective bargaining that’s taken place in the last 60-80 years.
The republican-controlled Wisconsin state legislature is trying to take away the collective bargaining rights of state, county and municipal workers.
These takeaways include:
- Automatic yearly elections where 51+% of all employees in a bargaining unit would have to vote in favor of union representation or the union would be decertified;
- No more union shops where membership or an equivalency fee are required as a condition of employment;
- Would limit wage increases to a small percetage based on the increase in the cost of living;
- Would force employees to pay nearly 13% of their healthcare costs;
- Reduces employers pension contributions.
And those are just the highlights. Basically, it would do away with public employee unions in Wisconsin.
No subtlety or subterfuge here. This is an open frontal assault on workers – union busting on a grand scale, like hasn’t been seen in this country in 60-80 years. And conducted by a state government, no less.
For the full details of the legislative changes Click here
The unions involved have already agreed to make the wage and benefit concessions. But even so, the republican controlled legislature insists on pressing ahead to repeal their collective bargaining rights. Governor Walker says he will not back down.
No, they’re not being subtle at all. It’s obvious that their real agenda is to do away with unions. Money is not the real issue. It’s worker’s rights.
The battle is on!
Wisconsin employees have been fighting back hard, with union members holding massive demonstrations at the capitol in Madison on a daily basis. They’ve been staying away from their jobs, conducting mass sick-outs.
The Tea Party has also been busy conducting its own counter demonstrations. Based on this, we can only assume that doing away with unions will become a mainstay of the Tea Party platform all over the US. Not that I can say I’m surprised.
If conservatives are successful at outlawing public employee unions in Wisconsin, then emboldened, it’s a given that similar battles will soon be fought in every state.
A number of other states (OH, IN, NJ and others) are already looking at enacting similar laws in the next few months for their public employees. But that’s likely to just be the start.
If it can happen in Wisconsin, it can – and will – happen anywhere. And potentially it won’t be limited to just public employees.
You better believe almost every private sector employer in the country is watching with great interest, just wishing they could do the same exact thing.
No union is immune from this sort of attack. Any successful attack on union rights in the US diminishes our power collectively. And it moves each other union just that much closer to having to fight these same battles themselves.
This is the time to mobilze!
Local public employee unions are planning rallies here in Washington, and I’m sure elsewhere. I urge everyone to get out and show your support for public employees.
And if you can’t, send bucks: Myself, I sent $100 to the Wisconsin State Employees Union. I think I’ll send more next week. If you’d like to donate, here’s a link to the Wisconsin AFSCME website, Click on the “Donate” link there -
I also hope all unions will send groups to Wisconsin to demonstrate solidarity.
Wow. I have talked with a few people who were pro-union before, but you are definitely the most fanatic.
I have worked as a mechanic for about 19 years and now as a composite technician making aircraft parts for over 13 years.
I have never been in a union. I think I would probably quit my job if it were to become a union shop. I have also never lost a work day, because an organization I was forced to join, had a disagreement with my employer. I have not been laid off, even though there have been several at my shop. Not because I have been there so long I can’t get fired, even though I have become lazy, and don’t care about my work. It’s because I do a good job, have been active in learning as much as I could about my job, and have been able to train people who have been hired after we got busy again.
I do not have to wait for a fork lift driver to move something that’s in my way, or stop work to let an electrician fix a simple plug. I don’t make $35.00/ per hour to simply put one door on one side of a car all day long. I am however, one of the highest paid techs in the shop.
Reading your blog post was enlightening.
Imagine a shop that had to vote to stay union every year. What if there was a walkout three months before the vote and every one of the workers had just lost two months pay because of a union dispute? Whoopsie!
Maybe if I didn’t want to be in your union and I still have to pay the dues? Or maybe I don’t agree with the politics of the union and I don’t want my dues going to someone I don’t support. Bugger me, eh?
Yeah, getting less than 5% to 10% raise every years sucks, but what if your company isn’t doing any better than that? Oh sure, big business makes too much off of our backbreaking labor. Let’s take more than we made for the company. There won’t be any more hiring and the people that quit, die, or retire won’t get replaced, but so what?
Wow, pay NEARLY 13% of your healthcare costs. Try 30% or 40% or more.
This last one breaks me up. “Reduces employers pension contributions.” Yeah, right. I’m lucky right now to get any match in my 401(k) at all. They froze the pension plan. I still have some money in it and its still increasing, but I can’t add to it. Nor do they. But you know, the day of someone working all their life at one place retiring after 40 years and getting a pension for the next 15 or 20 years is over. Maybe that’s not a good thing, but it is true.
I heard a funny joke a while back, “GM is the worlds biggest private insurer that also makes cars.” Of course that had nothing to do with the fact that they had to be bailed out by the government with my money. I don’t even own a GM. I do however own a Chrysler product. Remember them, THEY got bailed out too. With my money.
It never occurs to those fervent union members that their “overcompensation package” has anything to do with the collapse of some companies. They end up making more and more per unit, and companies make less and less per unit.
I agree that some of the heads of these companies get HUGE recompense. Maybe more than they deserve, but I’ll bet YOU couldn’t do their job. Neither could I.
There needs to be more morality and less regulation on business. The latter won’t work without the former, however. This country needs to get back to being honest and working for an honest days pay. Unions began for the purpose of fighting the dishonesty of business, but I think they have gotten too dishonest themselves.
Now in this day and age of poor employment, we have a company, Boeing, who wants to open up ANOTHER facility in another state. Mind you they have already added over 1,000 people to one of their facilities in Washington state. They want to open another plant in another state that is a right to work state, South Carolina. Oh my God! What are they thinking?! How could you give another 1,000 plus people a job without the blessings of a union? How could we ever actually make some money building and selling one of the biggest jets ever built? Oh my goodness! Think of the repercussions!
I can’t think of a better reason to take some of the wind out of the sails of unions that stupid stuff like this. We need the business in this country. There will be 1,000 or more people employed right there, but there will be 10′s of thousands that will get jobs and be able to feed their families for all of the other businesses that will supply them. Yes, maybe my shop too, although we don’t make anything for Boeing directly now.
I really think we will never see eye to eye on this topic. I just wanted to let you know that there are many of us who don’t agree with the union mindset.
Yes, I know there are a lot of people who dislike unions. And I really and truly don’t understand it, because it’s counter to your best interests.
You do know there are guys in Seattle – union guys - doing the exact same job you do, but probably make double the money, with much better benefits and all the rest. Strangely enough, the comapnies here are profitable. Maybe not as profitable as those located in right to work states, like Florida or South Carolina. But profitable nonetheless.
You begrudge these union guys the money they make, simply because they had the foresight and balls to join a union?
Sounds like you’re jealous.
Unions exist for one reason: to even the playing field between employees and management; to redistribute the balance of power more evenly.
Because without a union, the balance of power tips heavily in favor of the employer; employees are entirely at the mercy of management. Great if you have a good, benevolent employer, bad if you don’t.
Rather than drag all the union workers down to your standards, wouldn’t it be better if you had the same pay and benefits as the union guy in Seattle? Or would that cut too heavily into the stockholder’s dividends? Maybe, but does that really matter? I sure as hell don’t care.
Like I said, don’t knock union workers simply because they had the foresight and balls to organize a union.
And if you’re one of the highest paid guys in your shop, please be aware that if unions were suddenly gone, your pay and benefits would likely get smaller.
True story.
Whether you are willing to realize it or not, unions gave YOU the “high” wages you currently enjoy, by putting the fear of god into employers. Typically, non-union companies (that want to stay non-union) set their compensation just high enough – compared to union wages – so the people won’t feel too put upon and start thinking about getting a union.
It’s a high art figuring that sweet spot. It can’t be too high, but it’s gotta be up there at least a little bit…
But most assuredly, if unions were out of the picture, it’d be a helluva lot lower.
In many respects, the union movement screwed itself by giving away too many things: social security, the 40 hour work week, child labor protections, unemployment insurance just to name a few. None of those would be here today if it weren’t for unions. Protections people mostly take for granted.
So it goes.