SEARCH
Wisconsin’s Walker Calls for End of Collective Bargaining, Alerts National Guard
First, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) announced a state budget plan that strips state workers of nearly all their collective bargaining rights, cuts pay and benefits and says there will be no negotiations.
Today, he took it even further: He announced he has alerted the National Guard to be ready in case state workers strike or rise in protest. He told the Associated Press he’s been working on contingency plans for months.
The last time the National Guard was used against public workers was the Postal Workers strike in 1970. The last time the Guard was called out in Wisconsin to quell a labor dispute was the 1934 Kohler strike by the UAW.
Walker may be suffering from a bit of right wing paranoia about unions. Today when he dropped the National Guard bombshell, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported:
The Capitol news conference where Walker announced his plan had unusually high security, with four Capitol police offers stationed outside of it and checking on who was attending the event.
What a way to conduct the state’s business!
Click here to sign our Twitter petition to Governor Walker or to sign via Twitter, just tweet: petition @GovWalker to stop outrageous attacks against #WI workers. http://act.ly/32z #Wisconsin #WIgov #p2 (Please Re-Tweet)
 |
Become a Fan on Facebook |  |
Follow Us on Twitter |  |
Subscribe to YouTube |  |
Subscribe to Blog RSS | ||||
25 Comments
Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.
War has been declared on the working class of this country. How we react to this challenge will define our generation. If we do nothing the unions will be wiped-out in America. The politicians are daring us to do something about it. The corporations are in control and they mean to break us, once and for all. By the appearance of the anemic reaction across-the-board it looks like they have the situation pretty much figured out. What’s it going to be? Is there anything left or is it time to put a fork up our butt and turn us over because we are done? I hope not. http://sibob.org/wordpress/
Well, gotta give it to the AFL-CIO. Usually they’re chasing the plane down the tarmac after it has already left. This time, they’re All just standing there looking at each other with a stupid look on their faces. “Duh, which way do we go George ? Which way do we go ?” If this organization is the future of the labor movement, it’s over. You people couldn’t organize a pajama party. “Wah, they have more money than us !” Stop giving all our money to the capitulator in chief and other corporate whore democrats, get some feet on the street and then you’ll see some change. Until that happens, you are just a waste of everyone’s time and money. Worse than that, this organization is guilty of one of the worse crimes imaginable, dashing the hopes of the very people who have supported it through good times and bad. We look to you to lead the charge and instead we get lies, inaction and and half-hearted attempts at sttanding up for the working class. It actually all seems more like theater to me . The people will follow, we just need real leadership, not more politicking, cowardice and grandstanding. This is not a rant against my Union brothers and sisters, it is against the complacency and idleness of our leadership when so many need help.
I’m puzzled by Walker’s confidence in the reliability of the National Guard and police. The guardsmen and the police are public employees, too. Why are they taking-up arms against their fellow citizens? Why do the American People allow their security forces to be used against them?
This is the most dangerous man in America. This type of anti-union trash is the first step to stopping our freedom. This man is trying to be a modern day Ronald Reagan. I hope the good people Wisconsin can stop this before it spreads. Thanks…
1st what Walker is doing is to create a situation wher he can use exc power to replace workers with scabs. it was just a proposel that has to go to the floor for a vote.He made it public to go after the fear and anger of the people the nat guard is a threat to get people up in arms and not go to work,which is when he can replace them.he wants mob mentality.then he has control.if you want to help get all the unions out to support the state enployes of wi.And I am calling on the AFL-CIO to get all the internationl unions together at one time. the time of bikkering amungst ourselfs has to end. we all need to stand togther publicly now or the nat union bustting will continue and will win !!!! remember solidarity is not just a word,it is a belief that created our unions. and it is what those in power fear. STAND UP FOR YOUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS WHERE EVER THEY ARE AT NOT JUST AT A KEYBOARD !!!!!!
I live in wisconsin. First police and firemen are not included in this proposal. The proposal would not remove all collective bargaining rights, namely on benefits like pensions and health care. He want to have the members contribute 5.8% of their income to their pension plans, half of the total, which is common for a national average contribution. Then pay 12% of their health insurance premiums. I don’t like the approach taken, but since the last 2 year contract took a year and a half to complete, I understand the frustrastion. Walker is proposing not layoffs or foughloughs. This plan would save 5,000 – 6,000 jobs. The last governor, Jim Doyle, took away about 16 workdays. I don’t think this is horribly unreasonable proposal. I think the Unions should step up and accept the terms he is proposing in order to keep their collective bargaining rights on these issues going forward. That would be a brilliant move.
You say that you live in Wisconsin, but you don`t say whether you are a believer in unions in general. From your post it certainly sounds like you are not. If this is such a great idea, why not include the Policemen and Firemen? If it`s not, which it isn`t, why should they be exempt?
Walker`s radical right wing agenda of implementing a system that would cripple unions in their bargaining negotiations, while at the same time picking the pockets of middle class Americans to pay for his self decided agenda, is far from brilliant, but is simply wrong. You throw these percentages that workers are expected to pay around as if they are nothing. I remember when they wanted to raise the sales tax for some people to pay for the stadium in Milwaukee. People were livid and that was just a tiny percentage. Those affected by it, still feel the sting. Walker`s proposal in total seems a bit hypocritical, as it is exactly what the Tea-baggers have been accusing Democrats of doing; taking money from one group and giving it to others. Whether “you” think his proposal is horribly unreasonable or not is irrelevant. If you are actually a union member of one of the unions being affected, or a believer in unions at all, perhaps your post indicates you may be one of the newly hired people who are not aware of the struggles that the unions have had to go through to get the employees they represent where they are today. It`s because of this fighting for every single scrap of a benefit that has positively affected the playing field of every place of employment for workers throughout this country, including those that have no union at their place of employment, that every worker should be reluctant to just start giving things back, when demanded by the government. The taking away of “any” of the bargaining rights of the unions that represent the employees by any governmental organization is wrong. The threat of inflicting the National Guard is abuse of power and wrong. Is Walker also considering utilizing “Rex 84” whereby protesters will be thrown into containment camps? Look “Rex 84” up on the internet and ask yourself again, if you want the government involved in our bargaining process or not. They already have too much power in our lives. *When posting in public, you should always check your grammar and spelling.
*The first letter when writing States will always be capitalized.
*You spell furlough like this: furlough and not like this foughloughs.
*You spell frustration like this: frustration and not like this frustrastion.
*Your use of the word want in your fourth sentence should be wants.
*Your fifth sentence is incomplete and perhaps could have been combined with your fourth one somehow with proper grammar, of
course.
Hey thanks for the grammar lesson. It really doesn’t matter if your grammar is perfect if your strategy is flawed. I’m saying the Unions can call out Walker and expose him as a Union buster but i stead they are currently screaming, take it to the streets like in Egypt. Which is why he notified the national gaurd. Strategy folks…..
Get your facts right. He put the guard on notice to go to the prisons if the guards walk. He also stated that he had replacment workers on standby for the last month to cover the rest of the civil enployees in case they walked. As I have stated the man is not stupid, he has had this planned and set in place since he took the oath of office
To:conservativeunionite:
Aside from the grammar lesson remark, your response to me has little to do with what I wrote in response to your post. It looks like you are showing signs of confusion. My response to you said nothing about taking it to the streets nor did I mention Egypt. Your statement in your original post claiming brilliance for Walker`s load of Hitleristic demands and your “why not just accept it attitude” as a plan is not a viable strategy. This being said, I do not need you to tell me that “taking to the streets” is not an answer either. Again, perhaps you are confused on which poster you are addressing. To the contrary, my previous response specifically mentioned “Rex 84” and I suggested that you look it up and re-evaluate your position on rolling over and accepting what Mr. Walker is trying to jam down our throats, stating something to the effect that the government already had too much control over our lives. I was trying to tell you that specifically because of “Rex 84” and changes to other laws that have taken place regarding civil disruption and what the government can and will do when protestors, literally “take it to the streets” might not be an option. That did not mean that I in any way thought we should not gather support, and let that voice be heard in some manner of protest. Mr. Walker notified the National Guard prior to his announcement to get them ready in my opinion, for the possibility of initialization of “Rex 84” actions.
I’m sorry for your misunderstandings. I did not say the we shouldn’t protest. I have heard many call for scary protests. There are many civil ones right now and that is good. The union could present my stretegy and it would bring on a whole new outlook to this debate without any question by any of Walker’s intentions.
Yes yes, I understand you their are many scary things going on all around. I was not attacking you by any means. I was talking in generalites and to some of the more vocal personalities on this site and in the news media from the union leadership that are calling for revolution and protests like in Egypt. That is the scary part and when there are other options, I simply don’t understand the extreme jump. I want what is best for the unions, lets not fight with eachother over such petty technicalities.
I also live in WI. And yes police and fire are not included in this bill,would it be that they supported Walker in the election, even though their combinded pension is ( and lets be conservitive ) 60 % of the annual pension budget that he says he is useing to balance the state budget ? Or would it be that he is scared that the police & fire would do what everyother union is doing ? or does he plan on driving a wedge between the two largest civil uninos in the state ? I really don’t know, but the man is not stupid, and he is definitely out to bust the unions. So I am asking those brother and sisters in the police & fire unions, to step back and take a look at what is happening,you might be next !!
Please study up, yes some fire and police unions supported Scott Walker but not the vast majority. This is no favoritism. This seems to be a judgement call to keep the people safe and this is why he notified the national gaurd to be prepared. I believe the Unions in the public sector should prepare for this type of thing. I am currently preparing my members for a loss of pension or restructuring. Once we lay out all the details they are utterly shocked at how much money we waste on pensions when each person with a little education could do much better, especially in our particular situation.
OK 1st you didn’t respond to all my questions.2nd you are telling me that you are telling your members that the money that is going onto their retirement is a waste ? So why don’t you tell them that what they have done for their whole life’s is worth nothing, and they shouldn’t worry about what happens to them after their working life’s are done. And I suppose you want to raise the retirement age and get rid of SS. And by the way you should know what union I belong to by seeing what I log in as.
That is the divisive type of additude that makes progress so hard. No I don’t advocate doing away with social security, it is a bedrock programs in our nation. I do fear that many people do not understand what a pension actually is and what the pros and cons of a pension plan are. I personally am better off without a pension but in my union I am not allowed the option of taking a 401k matching plan, I am stuck with the pension, for now.
Also no, I would never discourage my fellow union brothers and sisters from supporting one another. I personally try to help individuals at the local level where I believe there is the most traction and fruits derived. You seem to think that I am a destructive force but I am the only one on here calling for a solution, one that actually allows Scott Walker to make the choice to wether he is the undeniable Unionbuster or not. I also desparately call on someone, anyone to come up with a comprehensive budgets solution that works for more people. Please please someone enlighten me. I don’t see these answers but I do see a lot of anger and that is what scares me as well as saddens me. Thank you for your time.
And by the way I plan on being in Madison tomorrow, I assume you are telling your members not to bother !!!!!
Assuming that his bill is only about paying more for pension, health insurance and bargaining rights is short sighted. I don’t think too many are arguing about paying a bit more. Seems like since this is likely to be a short term problem there should be a short term fix. If you read the full bill there’s a lot more to it. I have worked for the university for 22 years on annual contracts and would loose my eligibility for healthcare and retirement benefits. It’s a real kick in the face, not to mention that I am a cancer survivor and so will be uninsurable elsewhere. If you are interested in the real bill go to: http://thewheelerreport.com/releases/February11/0211/0211walkerbudgetlrb.pdf Also, consider supporting us in Madison this Tues and Wed.
Here we go !! It’s our trun Now !! In Egypt the Union joined the Peoples’ Protest to gain their Rights back and so now the People need to join the Union to fight inorder not to lose our Rights. This is the only real shot we the People have Economy and Social Justic. Let’s get organize before it’s to late!!
Here is the lowdown: There is a budget crisis in our states and in our nation. There is not enough revenue to fund services. How do we deal with the problem? Raising additional revenue is one choice, cutting funding for services is another.
Increasing revenue is off the table! The uber-rich will not stand for it! We saw an example of that when tax breaks for the wealthiest 2% were extended late last year. And lawmakers won’t eliminate tax subsidies for BIG business. Those corporate welfare programs are sacred! Instead, they opt to slash funding for essential services and trash workers!
Low-hanging fruit is easy to pick and that is what is happening. The first step is to sell the public on the notion that the “fruit” is fetid. Public employees , we are told, are protected by collective bargaining agreements that wind up gouging taxpayers. Presto! Public opinion turns against those workers. Media outlets and more than a few lawmakers successfully infect public discourse with sensationalist propaganda.
Public workers are not the only victims. The UAW got shafted by a Congress more interested in protecting wealthy investors – both foreign and domestic – than Main Street Americans.
Or take the “salvation” of too-big-to-fail banks. The filthy rich got protected while everyone else got sacrificed to the gods of free-market capitalism. We lost jobs, suffered home foreclosures, were robbed of pensions, health care, and then abandoned. Where was Congress? Where were the legislatures? Why were predatory lending practices allowed to exist in the first place? Why are health insurers permitted to gouge us? Why weren’t employers required to adequately fund retirement programs?
We’ve seen it time and again. Corporations expend billions of dollars to buy favorable legislation. Workers’ organizations cannot match such corporate largesse. You know what happens next. Workers lose while the wealthy grow wealthier.
Who was watching the store? Congress and legislators have oversight responsibilities. Why didn’t lawmakers do their jobs? Really! Things went sour on their watch! They owe us an explanation! Is it because of the way campaigns are financed? Is it because they spend two-thirds of the year collecting corporate donations for their next elections, and the remaining one-third passing laws that benefit those donors?
With everything that is going on, with all the savaging of working class families that is taking place, the time for a general strike is now. No single union can go it alone. Several million workers in key industries can, however, lead the struggle and demand that corporations and lawmakers stop treating workers as if we are disposable chattels.
It’s a ground up effort. Ranks and file need to prod recalcitrant leaders to lead, follow, or get out of the way! Organized labor must unite in a real workers’ movement to win social and economic justice for all.
Or, we can continue to allow Congressional corporatists to kick our butts, and then in another decade we can scratch our heads and sheepishly wonder how things got so bad.
You can’t tax enough from the rich to provide for all these entitlements and services that many want. This idea that the uber rich won’t allow it is foolish at best, in wisconsin our Uber rich is John menard, owner of menards hardwatd store. We could take every penny to his name and it still wouldn’t cover our state deficit. Again I don’t like the methodology Scott Walker is using but this is a huge problem that must be addressed and again I would love to hear a solution that makes more happy in wisconsin to solve our debt woes.
Hey how you ya doing guy. Just got back from madison,and thought I would touch base with ya. Have you been kepping up with everything going on in our state, besides what Fox & CNN have been saying ? And by the way there was anger, but the only ones trying to make that anger physical were the teabaggers on Sat. ( didn’t work to well for them.though some of them did give it that old collage try ) Had them outnumbered 100 to 1, despite what some news media might be saying.It was an amazing sight, and to be part of such a historic event. They did it, all the unions together,at one time and one place.It made me proud to be a union member, and an honor to be able to stand side by side with all my union and ( yes there were non -union workers out supporting us ) brothers and sisters. And my hat off to the firefighters and police for seeing through his hypocrisy and standing up with thier union brothers and sisters knowing full well what his response would be.Saying we are not afraid of you,do you know what it is we do for a living ?To watch it grow from 10 to 30 t0 60 thousand, and hopfully more in the coming week. It is not and never has been about the money. Anybody can hide behind a computer screen, so if you are a union member and live in WI, I will be back in Madison on Tues. As I have stated you should know what union I belong to, we have a presence there, just ask for glazier and this blog,Someone will get me the message, and we can have a intelligent discussing in person, and to see what being a union member is really all about.
Hey Mike, This article might be helpful, explains the NG call. http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/govt-and-politics/article_03b2b8f2-38a2-11e0-913e-001cc4c002e0.html
Here’s a news link for Gov Walker calliing in the national Guard:http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/govt-and-politics/article_03b2b8f2-38a2-11e0-913e-001cc4c002e0.html
The problen is easy to fix. Just raise taxes on everybody. Of course you will have to keep doing that until the other people who do not work for the state revolt in mass.
The union members and their supporters in Wisconsin are fighting for our democracy. I hope that all people fill the streets to support the people’s right to organize that people in other countries area also fighting for. This is an attempt to kill the democratic party and we know it. Acorn was killed by lies… The Wisconsin budget was fine until tax cuts were passed and if the governor wants to negotiate with the unions to take some cuts to help pay for them… he can do that. He has no right to pass laws stating that people cannot organize. And he should consider other ways of paying for the tax cuts.