This post by Ann Althouse on the anemic protester response to Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker’s budget plan – and it is an anemic response; it’s bad when you have to add a statue to your crowd in order to make your crowd look bigger – reminded me about Walker’s plan in the first place. I got told about this actually by Kevin Binversie, who runs Lakeshore Laments, was recently involved in Ron Johnson’s successful Wisconsin Senate run, is a good guy, and who is unaccountably not being headhunted by DC Republicans*; Governor Walker’s plan is fascinating in its audacity.
Essentially, what’s happening in Scott Walker’s budget that has the public sector unions melting down is that he’s planning to strip some of them of some of their collective bargaining “rights.” Specifically:
- Collective bargaining to only be allowed for base pay.
- Union dues not to be collected by the state.
- Annual Secret ballots to keep unions certified.
- UNION DUES TO BECOME VOLUNTARY.
There’s also the increasingly standard expectation (at least, among people who aren’t public sector union employees) that public sector union employees start paying into their own pension and insurance funds like the rest of us; also, Walker’s proposed union bargaining reforms will exempt cops and firemen. All of this is to start addressing Wisconsin’s pressing deficit issues; and, given that the Republicans flipped the state legislature last November, this is being pushed to pass. Quickly. As in, this week.
Walker’s already alerted the National Guard in response to the expected reaction to such a bill passing, but if the above Althouse post is any indication then there’s some question of whether he should have bothered. Although it is being reported that union thugs protested outside of the Wisconsin Speaker’s home; hopefully, there were no kids trapped inside the house waiting for the Mob to disperse. This time.
Moe Lane (crosspost)
*What is up with that?
Moe Lane
Dan Spencer
Dan McLaughlin
Jeff Emanuel
Why allow collective bargaining for base pay?
gawken (Diary) Monday, February 14th at 12:37PM EDT (link)Could someone explain why he’s willing to allow collective bargaining for base pay. It doesn’t happen in civilian jobs. The base wage is a function of the market. If any of the state employees feel that they are underpaid, they’re free to quit and seek a better paying job.
because base pay already has sunlight
Darin_H (Diary) Monday, February 14th at 2:28PM EDT (link)while they lose all their secret hiding of stealing taxpayer monies through benefits
A visionary coward says that anger can be power, as long as there’s a victim on TV – Flat Top, Goo Goo Dolls
Bingo.
Moe Lane (Diary) Monday, February 14th at 2:54PM EDT (link)It’s one thing to negotiate as a group for CoLA: that’s how you get CoLAs, frankly, and they show up as base pay adjustments. But sneaking in, say, having your pension fully paid-for by the company does *not* show up in base pay adjustments.
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My (combined) wish list.
Base pay bargaining wont matter....
jmo--sanantonio, tx (Diary) Monday, February 14th at 12:58PM EDT (link)in conjunction with the other reforms
* Collective bargaining to only be allowed for base pay.
* Union dues not to be collected by the state.
* Annual Secret ballots to keep unions certified.
* UNION DUES TO BECOME VOLUNTARY.
It’s what we have in Texas..works fine. Unions have a right to exist also. Just not in their current fashion.
“Stupid Is As Stupid Does”.—Mama Gump
I'd be interested to hear more about unions in TX
carolina Monday, February 14th at 5:33PM EDT (link)Are you referring to public sector and private sector unions?
I'd be interested to hear more about unions in TX
carolina Monday, February 14th at 5:33PM EDT (link)Are you referring to public sector and private sector unions?
let me sum up union sentiment in Texas
kyle8 (Diary) Monday, February 14th at 5:36PM EDT (link)The only good Union is a dead union.
Or something to that effect.
Now that is just average public sentiment. There are unions here, and some are powerful. (especially public unions) But they never had a chance to gain the kind of political power they did in the northeast states.
“Nothing works like freedom, Nothing succeeds like liberty”
Kyle
Wisconsin is different from D.C., Moe...
acat (Diary) Monday, February 14th at 2:07PM EDT (link)Significantly more firearms legally in private hands in Wisconsin.
Protestors trespassing on private property and causing a minor to fear for his (or her) life may become Darwin award winners.
Mew
——
Caveat Suffragator
Governor Walker has what it takes to reduce spending.
deevee Monday, February 14th at 3:32PM EDT (link)Changing some provisions of the state’s collective bargaining laws is greatly needed. As a former county supervisor I saw first hand that the unions had more say over decisions on managing our county budget than elected officials. The present system does not serve the state well and must be changed.
The only major hissy fits
neomom Monday, February 14th at 9:23PM EDT (link)that I am seeing are from actual non-fire/police public employees. All of a sudden they are concerned about being able to make ends meet if they have to pay. But the collective bargaining is really what has their knickers in a twist – especially the school teachers. And WEAC has OWNED the governor’s mansion. They are completely freaking out with Walker.
In Illinois our governor did the opposite...
liandro (Diary) Tuesday, February 15th at 2:00AM EDT (link)…in order to win election. He gave a guarantee that no public employees would lose their jobs, and he extended a contract right before he would have had to leave office if he lost. Bunch of other junk in it, too…sigh. The wave mostly passed by Illinois at the state level, and we’re going to suffer for it.