Wisconsin State AFL-CIO Blog

Bay View Tragedy Commemoration May 3

The 129th anniversary commemoration of the Bay View Tragedy will be held on Sunday May, 3 to honor the seven workers killed by the state militia while marching on behalf of the eight-hour day campaign on May 5, 1886, outside the Bay View Rolling Mills.

The event will be held at 3 p.m. Sunday, May 3, on the site of the State Historical Marker for the Bay View Rolling Mills, S. Superior St. and E. Russell Ave., Milwaukee.

The event, which has been celebrated annually on the first Sunday of May for the last 28 years, attracts 300 or more persons each year. It is held outdoors in front of the marker and is free.

Short speeches on the significance of the 1886 event to today’s issues will be featured along with music and a re-enactment of the 1886 event by the Milwaukee Public Theatre and the Milwaukee Mask and Puppet Theatre.

The Wisconsin Labor History Society is lead sponsor of the event, which is planned by a committee that includes representative of the Bay View Historical Society, residents of the Bay View area, union leaders and others.

Please join us May 3 as we honor those who gave their life for the 8-hour day and worker and immigrant rights.  

April 28: Workers' Memorial Day

On Tuesday April 28, 2015 Wisconsin workers will join with communities across the globe to pay tribute to workers killed or injured on the job.

Despite the progress workers and their unions have made in making workplaces safer and protecting workers, each year thousands of workers are killed and millions more injured or diseased because of their jobs. Many job hazards are unregulated and uncontrolled. Some employers cut corners and violate the law, putting workers in serious danger and costing lives. Workers who report job hazards or job injuries are fired or disciplined. At the same time, workers’ wages are stagnant and inequality is growing.

Workers are joining together on April 28 to “pray for the dead and fight like hell for the living,” as we raise our voices as one for safe jobs and worker protections. 

Join us in Wisconsin as we pay our respects to our brothers and sisters who never came home from work. 

Workers’ Memorial Day Commemoration Events in Wisconsin.  All events April 28 unless otherwise noted.

La Crosse:  5:30 p.m., Green Island Park, Labors Grove. City of La Crosse Councilman Francis Formanek will read a proclamation from the City proclaiming April 28 as Workers Memorial Day. Four guest speakers will memorialize these workers by sharing their memories and experiences with the audience. Speakers at this year’s event will be Tim Kabat, (Mayor - City of La Crosse), Jill Billings (95th Assembly), Steve Doyle (94th Assembly) and John Medinger (Representing the Office of US Senator Tammy Baldwin).
Two additional workers will be added to the solemn cross procession this year. Kevin Parlow, civilian employee with the Army, who died from head injuries after vehicle he was repairing, dropped, pinning him between cab and front bumper (2013) & Brooke Baures, who died when she accidentally became trapped in the machinery of a food-service elevator at a Fountain City restaurant (2014).

Madison:  10:30 a.m. Madison Labor Temple, 1602 S. Park St., Room 201A.  Please join SCFL, WisCOSH, OSHA, and the Interfaith Coalition for Worker Justice as we read the names of the Wisconsin workers who died on the job in the past year and renew our commitment to fighting for safe jobs for all workers.

Madison:  4:00 p.m. Saint Patrick’s Church, 404 E. Main Street, Madison.  A special Construction Workers’ Memorial Day Service will be held to honor those individuals who lost their lives in construction accidents in the past year. Before the Service, construction workers and family members of those who lost their lives will participate in a HARD HAT PROCESSIONAL from the Monona Terrace to the Church.

Menomonie:  5:00 - 7:00 pm, Dean and Sue's Bar and Grill, 2002 Midway Road.  Primarily organized by the Greater West Central Area Labor Council, join area working families to honor and commemorate the lives of workers killed on the job.

Milwaukee:  5:00 p.m., Zeidler Union Square Park.  Join the Milwaukee Area Labor Council and WisCOSH in commemorating the lives of our lost brothers and sisters.  There will be a reading of the names of those workers killed on the job or died due to occupational illnesses in Wisconsin during 2015 as well as those service men and women who've died in combat which will be followed by a period of reflection and remembrance.

Superior:  Wednesday, April 29, 9:00 a.m. Heritage Park, 2800 Hammond Ave

Wausau:  6:30 p.m., Workers’ Memorial Site, 388 River Dr.  Please join Marathon County Labor Council on Tuesday, April 28 as we remember the Wisconsin workers who have died this year and renew our commitment to fight for safer jobs.  If weather is poor the memorial will be held at the Wausau Labor Temple: 318 South 3rd Ave., in the Main hall upstairs.

Rhinelander:  Saturday, May 2, Workers’ Memorial Day Observance, 11:00 AM-1:00 PM at Pioneer Park at the Workers’ Memorial Rock, Rhinelander. All workers and their families are invited to pay tribute to those who have given their lives to earn a living. Keynote Speaker:  Father Dean Einerson, Saint Augustine’s Church. Solidarity Sing and Food. Sponsors:  North Central Labor Coalition, Northwoods Labor Solidarity, Northern Wisconsin Center for Working People.

This year’s commemoration comes at a time when Workers’ Compensation protections are under attack across the country and in Wisconsin.  Governor Walker’s proposed budget attempts to upend our Workers Compensation system by splitting its department and transferring its many functions to two separate State departments.  Our current system has proven results that are beneficial for our workers and employers.  We know that states that have split systems like Illinois and Texas have worse outcomes for injured workers. Wisconsin’s Worker’s Compensation system is one of the best in the country and it should stay that way.  Wisconsin lawmakers should reject any proposal that would split and transfer the Workers Compensation Division functions to other departments.

Tell Congress: Stop Fast Track of Bad Trade Deals

A NAFTA-style trade deal that would outsource U.S. jobs and lower wages has been introduced in Congress.  

The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) is a massive 12-nation trade deal being negotiated in secret with big corporations calling the shots.  Worse still, the TPP is being put on “Fast Track Trade Promotion Authority” which means this deal could rush through Congress in a single up or down vote with no debate on the package.  On Thursday, Fast Track Trade Promotion Authority for the TPP cleared the House of Representatives' Ways and Means Committee, chaired by Wisconsin’s own Rep. Paul Ryan. The companion "fast track" bill passed a Senate panel on Wednesday, and now both “fast track” trade bills are ready for action in their individual chambers. 

Contact your member of Congress today and tell them to protect jobs and oppose Fast Track for the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Now is the time to make these calls.  It is expected that votes will take place before Memorial Day.  

Fast Track of the Trans-Pacific Partnership allows massive trade deals to be negotiated behind closed doors, and tips the balance toward a deal that sells out U.S. workers in order to pad the wallets of corporate CEOs. If Congress passes Fast Track, it would virtually guarantee the passage of trade deals that ship jobs overseas and give corporations more power over our lives. 

Have we learned nothing from NAFTA? Bad trade deals like the Trans-Pacific Partnership have outsourced millions of jobs, lowered wages and increased income inequality in our country.  The labor movement is standing up and fighting Fast Track for the TPP.  Unfortunately, President Obama and some democratic lawmakers support the TPP. 

The AFL-CIO has made defeating of Fast Track a top priority, vowing to fight any trade agreement that fails to prioritize the needs of working families and advance shared prosperity in the global economy.

Make your voice heard. Call your member of Congress today and tell them you oppose Fast Track for the Trans-Pacific Partnership.

Community members give Paul Ryan a failing grade on trade policy

Today in Janesville, union workers and community members gathered at Rep. Paul Ryan’s office to call attention to the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).  Constituents are calling on the Congressmen to stop “fast track” for the massive trade deal.  Protestors cited outsourced job loss and low wages as the primary concern of bad trade policy like the TPP.

The Trans-Pacific Partnership is a massive, 12-nation trade deal being negotiated in secret between the countries of Australia, Brunei, Chile, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Canada, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam. The TPP would encourage companies to outsource millions of good-paying American jobs to low-wage foreign countries, resulting in a race to the bottom in wages and working conditions at home and abroad. The TPP also threatens environmental standards, food safety and labeling provisions.

Wednesday’s action at Rep. Paul Ryan’s Janesville office builds on growing momentum to stop the TPP. This week similar actions will take place in La Crosse, Madison, and Milwaukee as workers come together to call on their elected representatives to stop unfair trade deals that hurt working people.

Over the last few months, tens of thousands of Americans have raised their collective voices in opposition to Fast Track.  According to the AFL-CIO, over 86,000 calls were made to Members of Congress while over 40,000 people signed onto a national petition to stop Fast Track. Around the country over 400 events were organized in Congressional districts.

Are you In? 4-15

Only days left before we make history.
 
On April 15, we will be standing up, speaking out and fighting for fair pay at the MASSIVE rallies around the globe for the Fight for $15.
 
Stand with us.
 
If you believe that every mother who works hard for a living should make enough money to feed her kids – then stand with us.
 
If you believe that a man who works for a company for 5 years – every single day in a hot kitchen – and still makes $8.25 an hour, deserves a raise – then stand with us.
 
If you believe that it is TIME for companies that make record profits to give back to communities that support them by paying their employees enough to live – then stand with us.
 
At the Wisconsin AFL-CIO, we’ll be standing with the Fight for $15.
 
Sign up now to join the Fight for $15 rally in your city on April 15. Stand with the fast food workers fighting for $15 an hour and union rights.
 
We’re inspired by the victories: a $15 wage in Seattle and San Francisco, a $12.25 wage in Oakland – and cities from New York to Chicago to LA clamoring to push theirs even higher.
 
And we believe it’s time for McDonald’s and poverty-pay corporations like them to pay their employees enough to support their families.
 
So, we’ll be standing up and speaking out on April 15. Will you be there with us?
 

Vote Ann Walsh Bradley April 7

Wisconsin is ready to re-elect Justice Ann Walsh Bradley to our Supreme Court.  Justice Ann Walsh Bradley has a proven track record of standing up to special interests.  She votes impartially for fairness and justice for the people of Wisconsin. 

It is important that everyone get out and vote on Tuesday, April 7, to re-elect Ann Walsh Bradley.

 

 

Justice Bradley has strong roots in Wisconsin.  She was born and raised in Richland Center, taught school in La Crosse and practiced law in Wausau before serving on the Wisconsin Supreme Court.  Justice Bradley is an independent judge who understands the concerns of hard-working Wisconsinites and will vote in the best interest of the people.  

Justice Ann Walsh Bradley will continue to bring balance and impartiality to the Supreme Court. 

Vote Ann Walsh Bradley on Tuesday, April 7.