Press Release: Wisconsin State AFL-CIO on the Budget Repair Bill Proposed by Governor Walker

BUDGET REPAIR BILL
PROPOSED BY GOVERNOR WALKER

March 2, 2011

Special Session Senate Bill 11 / Assembly Bill 11

Major attacks on collective bargaining rights for Wisconsin workers and their unions are included in the Budget Repair Bill offered by Governor Walker. Special Session AB 11 passed the State Assembly on a party-line vote and is awaiting action in the State Senate. [Note: The Governor has also introduced his proposed 2011-2013 Biennial State Budget as identical bills in each house: Assembly Bill 40 and Senate Bill 27.]

Attack on Collective Bargaining Rights

· Effectively, all collective bargaining rights are eliminated for approximately 200,000 public employees who work for the State of Wisconsin, cities, counties and school districts. Their unions will be permitted to bargain for wages only. However, a pay increase (if any) would be capped at the consumer price index. All other items are prohibited subjects of bargaining, such as: sick days, seniority rights, transfer and promotion rights, health care, pension benefits, vacations, health and safety, layoff and recall rights, medical leave and work rules. In the private sector, all of these items are subjects of bargaining between the union and the employer, but public sector workers are covered by state collective bargaining laws.

· Unions representing public employees are required to hold a decertification election every year to continue to show majority support for the union. There are close to 2,000 bargaining units in state and local government where the Wisconsin Employment Relations Commission would be required to conduct elections each year, some units are small as 3 to 4 employees. The union will be decertified if it does not receive a supermajority of at least 51% of all employees in the bargaining unit, regardless of how many actually vote.

· Collective bargaining agreements are limited to one year in duration, and may not be extended.

· No public employee can be required to contribute any amount to the costs of union representation. It is illegal for any public employer to enter into a Fair Share agreement with a union, which would require a financial contribution to the union related to the costs of administering the union contract, even if the person chooses not to be a member. This is anti-union “Right-to-Work” for the public sector.

· Public sector employers are prohibited from providing payroll deduction of union dues.

The only public employees that are exempt from Governor Walker’s attack on collective bargaining rights are unions representing state troopers, police and firefighters.

These collective bargaining rights were won by public employees in Wisconsin through the democratic process, beginning in 1959.

Still more:

· Nurses and other health care workers employed by the UW Hospitals & Clinics Authority will lose their bargaining rights entirely, despite the fact that the UW Hospitals & Clinics Authority does not receive state funds. Because of their union protection, nurses have been able to fight for better patient care without fear of retaliation. They will lose this independent voice.

· There are some 15,000 faculty and academic staff employees in the University of Wisconsin System who will lose their bargaining rights entirely. These rights were just won during the 2009-2010 Legislative Session after decades of struggle.

· Bargaining rights for state-certified home health care providers (who take care of the elderly and disabled in their homes) and child care providers are eliminated entirely.

· The bill actually includes discipline procedures for state employees. If Governor Walker declares a state of emergency, any public employees who participate in a work stoppage or slowdown or any other collective activity that affects the performance of state government will be fired.

None of these Budget Repair Bill provisions that gut collective bargaining have anything to do with addressing the state deficit. They are meant to break the unions that public employees have chosen for their representation.

Public sector unions have agreed to pay nearly 6 percent of their wages for pension costs and also double their payments for health insurance to help the state address the deficit. Governor Walker insists that is not enough. He has absolutely refused to sit down at a bargaining table and negotiate with the unions, despite repeated requests. The Governor still insists on gutting collective bargaining rights, so the Budget Repair Bill is not about addressing the state deficit. It is union-busting.

The gains that public and private sector union members have won over decades of struggle built Wisconsin’s middle class. Without strong unions, there will be no wage and benefit standards that benefit all working families. There will be no balance in the relationship between employers and employees. There will be no check on unlimited corporate power. Today, the attack is on the collective bargaining rights of workers in public service. Tomorrow it will be the rest of the middle class.

Additional Issues

And it doesn’t stop there. The Budget Repair Bill:

· Gives Governor Walker the power to sell the power plants that heat and cool many state institutions at whatever price he decides—with absolutely no competitive bidding. These plants are valuable public assets which were created and supported by taxpayers for decades.

· Gives Governor Walker and his chosen head of the Department of Health Services the power to make sweeping changes to Medicaid and BadgerCarePlus health programs without legislative approval and public input. BadgerCare is health coverage for working families and the Medicaid program provides substantial benefits for seniors and others.

· Threatens $47 million in federal aid for Wisconsin’s mass transit systems because federal law stipulates that collective bargaining rights must be preserved to qualify for the aid.

Prepared by:

Joanne Ricca
Legislative Research & Policy Director
Wisconsin State AFL-CIO
(414) 418.6966
jricca@wisaflcio.org