This Weekend's Meet & Greet's with Kathleen Falk

We wanted to make sure that you knew about Kathleen's upcoming public events this weekend. Please feel free to forward to interested parties.

Come Meet Kathleen Falk in Rice Lake! (Meet and Greet)
Saturday, March 24, 2012
2:00 PM to 3:00 PM
Rice Lake Uniserv [MAP IT]
16 West John Street
Rice Lake, WI 54868

RSVP: http://action.kathleenfalk.com/page/event/detail/meetandgreet/4v7v2

Come Meet Kathleen Falk in Rhinelander! (Meet and Greet)
Sunday, March 25th, 2012
12:00 PM to 1:00 PM
Claridge Hotel [MAP IT]
70 North Stevens Street
Rhinelander, WI 54501

RSVP: http://action.kathleenfalk.com/page/event/detail/meetandgreet/4v7lf

Contact: Brita Olsen, Field Director, Kathleen Falk for Wisconsin

Scott Walker Still Won’t Negotiate, Even Under His Own Terms | Center for Media and Democracy

Governor Scott Walker is currently running a million dollar TV ad campaign on "Promises Kept," but after misleading the public on his plans to radically reshape collective bargaining in the state, Walker can't even be bothered to negotiate with the few unions who played by the new rules and are coming to the bargaining table in good faith.


Scott Walker Still Won’t Negotiate, Even Under His Own Terms | Center for Media and Democracy

Recalled Wisconsin State Senator At DUI Trial: I Was Drinking, But It’s A Union Conspiracy | TPMMuckraker

Remember Randy Hopper, the Republican state senator in Wisconsin who was recalled and defeated in 2011 — and later in the year was arrested and charged with drunk-driving? He and his lawyer are now presenting their defense in the trial: It’s all a political conspiracy by the unions.

Recalled Wisconsin State Senator At DUI Trial: I Was Drinking, But It’s A Union Conspiracy | TPMMuckraker

Statement by Senator Jim Holperin

Friday, March 23, 2012
Contact: (715) 891-1412

State Senator Jim Holperin said today he would not run for re-election this fall.

“I’ve given this decision considerable thought, not just recently but over time. Politics and legislating are fascinating and fulfilling work and I’ve enjoyed 20 years of it in the State Assembly, State Senate and as a cabinet secretary.

“I wouldn’t trade the experience for anything in the world, but now there are other things I want to do.

“Whatever success I’ve had politically I owe to the voters and to the thousands of supporters who worked so hard on my behalf over the years, and especially in last year’s recall. I’m so grateful for that support and I will always appreciate those who gave me the privilege of serving.”

Checkout the SEPAC Bio Page for Senator Jim Holperin >>>

RGA going on TV in Wisconsin--Paul video: Sketchgate shows rivals unserious--Early excerpts of Biden Florida attack on Romney--Santorum likely to win Louisiana by double digits - POLITICO Morning Score - POLITICO.com

RGA GOING ON OFFENSE IN WISCONSIN: The Republican Governors Association will begin airing an ad today that attacks the two leading Democratic candidates vying to replace Gov. Scott Walker in Wisconsin’s recall election.


RGA going on TV in Wisconsin--Paul video: Sketchgate shows rivals unserious--Early excerpts of Biden Florida attack on Romney--Santorum likely to win Louisiana by double digits - POLITICO Morning Score - POLITICO.com

Wisconsin governor to speak at Illinois business event next month

Controversial Republican Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin will venture south into blue-state territory next month to talk to Illinois business leaders about state pension debt and other issues. Walker will be keynote speaker for a business lobby-day in Springfield April 17th, sponsored by the Illinois Chamber and the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB). …. “A year ago, Gov. Walker rammed through a bill that stripped the rights of public service workers in Wisconsin, claiming it was necessary to create 250,000 jobs,” said Illinois AFSCME spokesman Anders Lindall. He cited data showing Wisconsin has since had among the nation’s worst job-creation records.


Wisconsin governor to speak at Illinois business event next month

The GOP’s assault on labor rights: What is happening in the states? - The Hill's Congress Blog

…. While impressive, this assault on federal labor rights pales in comparison to what has been happening – occasionally in full view, but mostly with little notice – at the state level. Almost everyone knows about the 2011 legislation stripping public sector workers of collective bargaining rights in Wisconsin and Ohio, and Indiana’s 2012 “right-to-work” (RTW) legislation, which outlaws union security agreements. However, the sheer number of anti-union bills supported by GOP-controlled legislatures demonstrates the breadth and depth of the party’s anti-unionism. … At least 10 states have introduced so-called “paycheck protection” measures, which are designed to place strict limits on the use of union dues money for political purposes, while placing few, if any, restrictions on corporate political spending. …. And finally: not one new job has been created by this tsunami of anti-union legislation.


The GOP’s assault on labor rights: What is happening in the states? - The Hill's Congress Blog

Wisconsin DOJ appeals judge's ruling to stop voter ID | News - Home

MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- Wisconsin's Department of Justice is appealing a judge's ruling blocking the state's voter photo identification law.


Wisconsin DOJ appeals judge's ruling to stop voter ID | News - Home

AFSCME Council 24 Press Release

March 23, 2012
Contact: Marty Beil
608-836-0024

Walker Administration Stonewalls Correctional Staff Safety Concerns

When Gov. Scott Walker “dropped the bomb” on public employee collective bargaining rights, he said his administrationwould still respect the voice of workers, even if those workers no longer had clearly defined rights and work rules refined through years of good faith negotiations.

Like most of what Walker says, his words don’t match reality.

In the Department of Corrections, Walker’s top bureaucrats are pointedly ignoring concerns raised by employees about deteriorating workplace safety and soaring staff vacancies.

On Feb. 24, leaders elected by front-line workers from every state correctional institution sent a letter by certified mail to DOC Secretary Gary Hamblin requesting a meeting to discuss serious problems such as assaults on staff and soaring vacancies.

The Department has not responded to the letter, or to follow-up emails.

“This administration has been absolutely non-responsive to serious concerns raised by workers,” said Marty Beil, executive director of the Wisconsin State Employees Union, AFSCME Council 24.

“By blowing up work rules and local agreements that ensured smooth operations, they’ve created chaos and confusion. Worse, they obviously have zero interest in finding workable solutions to the problems they’re creating,” Beil said.

The resulting low morale has led to vacancy rate of more than 5% in the department, which is driving up overtime costs to record levels. Last week, the Department had to request additional funding for overtime from the Legislature’s Joint Committee on Finance.

The letter from 19 WSEU Local Presidents was just one of many efforts DOC employees have made to turn around a rapidly deteriorating situation. The efforts are consistently met with stonewalling and indifference from above, Beil said.

“As with its failed legislative strategy, this administration only wants to impose its radical agenda without listening to anybody who hasn’t been gulping their Kool-Aid,” he said.

“In this case, they are imposing one-size-fits-all ideology on a system full of complexity and localized variables. It doesn’t work. But they aren’t interested in what works. Their only interest is pushing an extreme political agenda. You would hope that some things would be above politics, like the safety of people who puttheir lives on the line for us every day. Sadly, nothing is above politics on Walker’s watch,” Beil said.

[END]

Waupun Prison Warden Claims City of Waupun as His Fiefdom

Please look at the YouTube video regarding a situation that occurred on the street outside the Waupun Correctional facility. Pollard, warden at WCI, thinks that not only the prison, but the City of Waupun is his little fiefdom. What a sad state of affairs that these Walker zealots have created. They think that they can bully the public like they bully the workers. It should be interesting on Tuesday, March 27th, Waupun Prison Protest Day.

2 state unions file unfair labor practices complaints - JSOnline

At least two public-sector unions that recertified late last year have filed unfair labor practice complaints against Gov. Scott Walker's administration, accusing it of failing to negotiate in good faith.


2 state unions file unfair labor practices complaints - JSOnline

On Campus: Group says UW-Madison may be holding illegal, private meetings

For months, a UW-Madison committee has been convening in private to rewrite work rules for the campus' 17,000 employees.

On Campus: Group says UW-Madison may be holding illegal, private meetings

Public employees pushing back some of new disciplinary rules

Public employees are pushing back some of the new disciplinary rules that were imposed as part of the controversial 2011 repeal of legal union rights for most government workers in Wisconsin.

Public employees pushing back some of new disciplinary rules

Exclusive: Shadowy WI Group Bankrolled by Big Labor Unions | Mother Jones#return#return#return

Earlier this month, a shadowy Wisconsin political group with a post-office box address joined the fight to recall Republican Gov. Scott Walker. The group, Wisconsin for Falk, spent more than $500,000 on TV ads backing Democratic recall candidate Kathleen Falk yet did not disclose its funders or who started the group. … Wisconsin for Falk, Mother Jones has learned, is bankrolled big labor unions including the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees [4] (AFSCME), one of the nation's largest public-employee labor unions, and the Wisconsin Education Association Council [5], the state's largest teachers union. A high-ranking labor source confirmed AFSCME and WEAC's involvement and funding for Wisconsin for Falk for the purpose of making pro-Falk independent expenditures in the recall fight. Walker's recall election is expected to take place [6] in early June.


Exclusive: Shadowy WI Group Bankrolled by Big Labor Unions | Mother Jones#return#return#return

Election 2012: Jeff Fitzgerald stops at Milwaukee Press Club | ThirdCoast Digest

.. He told members of the Milwaukee Press Club yesterday that his leadership and plan for Wisconsin would easily travel to Washington, where the national debt is out of control, entitlements need to be trimmed and partisan bickering is at a fever-pitch. … Returning to state politics, Fitzgerald said the claim that unions knew nothing of the administration’s plans to target collective bargaining in Act 10 is false. He said Marty Beil, Executive Director of the Wisconsin State Employees Union, knew workers were going to be expected to pay more for benefits. … Fitzgerald added the bill to limit collective bargaining wasn’t just about getting more buy-in from state employees, but also a way to eliminate entrenched corruption that had been bargained into statewide contracts.


Election 2012: Jeff Fitzgerald stops at Milwaukee Press Club | ThirdCoast Digest

Judges bar Wisconsin GAB from using new election maps | News - Home

A panel of federal judges has barred the state elections board from using new Republican-drawn election maps.


Judges bar Wisconsin GAB from using new election maps | News - Home

Iraq vets back public workers, public workers back vets

Last year, on the anniversary of the U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq, the national Iraq Veterans Against the War movement organized a historic march in Madison. An estimated 10,000 veterans rallied in solidarity with the movement that challenged Gov. Scott Walker’s anti-labor agenda. “We’re public employees too,” explained Aaron Hughes, an IVAW organizer who worked with the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees union to get the march together. “Many veterans go into the public sector because there’s a veterans’ preference, so we depend on these public sector unions to protect our rights as veterans.”


Iraq vets back public workers, public workers back vets

Walker on recall: This is 'Waterloo' - POLITICO.com Print View

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker says his upcoming recall election is a “Waterloo” moment for national unions that will “invest everything possible to try and take me out to send a message.” Walker told Fox News’s Greta Van Susteren on Monday night in Milwaukee he believes the vast majority of money that will pour into the June recall will come from out of state. And the unions, the Republican governor said, will be leading the charge against him in the new few months. “The national unions, for them, this is all about the money,” Walker said.


Walker on recall: This is 'Waterloo' - POLITICO.com Print View

Daily Kos: AFL-CIO proposes several interconnected ways to fix the economy

….. The AFL-CIO, which was an unhyphenated duo when the Lynds wrote their assessment eight decades ago, has some ideas, not all of them new and some of them needing tweaks, but all of them steering us on the right course for fixing an economy that has gone so sour for Muncie and our other Middletowns: … So what's on the AFL-CIO's list? … • Deal with wage stagnation and economic inequality. Reform labor laws to allow all workers to form unions and bargain collectively. Make full employment the highest priority of U.S. economic policy. Increase and index the minimum wage. Shrink the trade deficit. Eliminate incentives for off-shoring jobs. … • "Shrink our bloated financial sector and make it serve the real economy once again." Reregulate Wall Street. Eliminate tax advantages for leveraged buyouts.


Daily Kos: AFL-CIO proposes several interconnected ways to fix the economy

UPDATE: Former Walker aide pleads not guilty to 4 charges | News - Home

MILWAUKEE (AP) -- A former aide to Scott Walker before Walker became governor has pleaded not guilty to four felony charges related to campaigning while at work for Milwaukee County.


UPDATE: Former Walker aide pleads not guilty to 4 charges | News - Home

AFSCME Council 24 to Protest OSER

Do you have some spare time over lunch on Wednesday, 03/21? AFSCME Council 24 will be conducting an Informational Picket of OSER from 11:30am - 1:00pm.

OSER is located at 101 E. Wilson St., Madison. Please join your brothers and sisters as we protest against the unreasonableness and unfair practices of OSER.

We hope you can be there.

For more information contact AFSCME Council 24 at (608) 836-0024 or email@wseu-24.org.

Madison firefighter announces he’ll be a candidate for lieutenant governor | The Oshkosh Northwestern | thenorthwestern.com

Professional Fire Fighters of Wisconsin President Mahlon Mitchell announced Monday that he is running for lieutenant governor as a Democrat in the upcoming round of recalls. Professional Fire Fighters of Wisconsin President Mahlon Mitchell announced ...


Madison firefighter announces he’ll be a candidate for lieutenant governor | The Oshkosh Northwestern | thenorthwestern.com

Public employees pushing back some of new disciplinary rules

Public employees are pushing back some of the new disciplinary rules that were imposed as part of the controversial 2011 repeal of legal union rights for most government workers in Wisconsin. The Jefferson County Board last week loosened a proposed discipline standard after unions protested, and Columbia County employees are winning a series of changes to a controversial policy that top officials wrote behind closed doors to prevent employee input….“The standards being adopted in many of the counties are a very low threshold for employers and offer very little protection for workers,” said Martha Merrill, lead research analyst for the Madison-based American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Council 40 who recently surveyed public workers in the state.


Public employees pushing back some of new disciplinary rules

Right-to-Work Laws, Explained | Mother Jones

So what is a right-to-work law, anyway? The basics: No American worker can be forced to join a union. But most unions push companies to agree to contracts that require all workers, whether they're in the union or not, to pay dues to the union for negotiating with management. State right-to-work laws make these sorts of contracts illegal, meaning that workers in unionized businesses can benefit from the terms of a union contract without paying union dues. (Under federal law, unions must represent all workers covered by a contract, even if some of those workers are not members of the union and do not pay for the union's representation.)
Unions are fighting the expansion of these laws, which currently apply in 23 US states. A coalition of lawmakers, manufacturers, tea partiers, and big conservative think tanks want to see them passed in the rest of the US.

Right-to-Work Laws, Explained | Mother Jones

Dick Meister: Labor's David vs. GOP's Goliath | SF Bay Guardian

Organized labor is doing exactly what it must do to combat the onslaught against unions being waged by Republican politicians nationwide, throwing lots of money and lots of ground troops into the election campaigns of Democrats – most especially President Obama's campaign for re-election.... Unions expect to spend $400 million this year on national, state and local elections, fully one-fourth of it coming from a key AFL-CIO affiliate, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. …


Dick Meister: Labor's David vs. GOP's Goliath | SF Bay Guardian

Newspaper: 29 judges sign Walker recall petition | News - Home

SHEBOYGAN, Wis. (AP) -- A newspaper analysis finds that 29 judges from 15 Wisconsin counties were among those who signed petitions to recall Gov. Scott Walker.


Newspaper: 29 judges sign Walker recall petition | News - Home