And then what? Those behind all of this aren’t your
garden variety DUpies or Kosniki. They must have a
Plan B ready.
What is that “move to weaken public unions?” Surely compelling union members to contribute part of their pay to their own retirement funds and at least a meaningful portion of their medical insurance premiums cannot be construed as a “move to weaken public unions.”
As a Univ of Wis faculty member a TIA retirement fund contribution was withheld from my salary. Of course, I did not have a union contract to exempt me from that reasonable requirement.
The following what a “move to weaken ... labor unions” (sarc) looks like, what Governor Walker’s Budget Repair Bill actually seeks to achieve:
- Ask government workers to pay half the cost of their pensions - still less than private employees pay for their pensions
- Ask government workers to pay 12% of their own health insurance premiums - the national average for the private sector is over 20%
- End collective bargaining for government unions for pensions and benefits. Allow bargaining only for raises that are less than inflation.
- End forced union dues, collected by the state. Union dues would become voluntary.
- Union members get to vote yearly on whether to keep their union.