Wisconsin State AFL-CIO Blog

Prevailing Wage Attacked

Today, Assembly Speaker Rep. Robin Vos held a press conference to unveil his plan to lower wages and weaken prevailing wage standards for hard-working people in Wisconsin. Rep. Vos conceded that there is no quantitative study that shows that repealing or weakening prevailing wage laws achieve cost savings for the state.

But, in an attempt to continue to pay back large donations and please the Koch Brothers’ front-group Americans For Prosperity, Rep. Vos is continuing down a disheartening path of enacting legislation that hurts working people and our middle class.

Even Republicans like Rep. Dan Knodl, who support this proposal, agree that weakening the prevailing wage will “drive down wages” in our communities and “decrease wages” for working people.

Prevailing wage makes sure that taxpayer-funded projects use local workers who make a living wage; this contributes to the overall well-being of local economies. Prevailing wage strengthens the middle class and lifts up all workers. With prevailing wage, construction projects are top-quality because highly-skilled, well-trained workers are able to complete projects on time and on budget. Prevailing wage creates value through good wages for workers, stability for contractors and safe, sound and sturdy construction buildings for citizens. Protecting prevailing wage laws are essential for a strong and stable middle class.

From today’s press conference, it appears that attacks on the prevailing wage will be either snuck into the budget or pursued through independent legislation. Currently, the 2015-2017 Wisconsin budget is still being debated in the Joint Finance Committee. Along with weakening the prevailing wage, the budget is full of bad things for working people – all which hurt Wisconsin and take us backwards.

Join us as we make phone calls to fix the budget. Volunteers are working to connect union members with their elected officials so they can hear from REAL people about this budget. Be part of the process! Click here to join us in raising the voices of working people and involving more citizens in the budget process.

From cuts to K-12 education, the privatization of homecare, job cuts for prison guards and attacks on our UW-System -- this budget is all wrong for working class Wisconsinites. Driving down wages by weakening prevailing wage only makes a bad budget worse.  Click here to find a budget phone bank near you!

Make Calls to Fix the Worst Budget Ever

Budget negotiations have stalled as Republicans squabble over how many ways they can attack working families and roll back public services in Wisconsin. You can be sure that lawmakers are hearing from big-time lobbyists and special interests during this time. Now, it is time for lawmakers to hear from real Wisconsinites and get YOUR thoughts on the budget.

The Wisconsin AFL-CIO will be hosting phone banks to help connect union members with their elected representatives. Sign up now to connect voters to their legislators and make sure they know that Wisconsinites oppose this budget.

Working people are sounding the alarm against cuts to public schools, attacks on prevailing wage, the federalization of Wisconsin’ Family and Medical Leave protections, the privatization of homecare, destruction of the ideals that the UW-System was built on, job cuts at prisons and cuts to public services such as recycling and public broadcasting.

Phone banks will be open in Eau Claire, Kenosha, Madison, Milwaukee and Wausau and Wisconsin Rapids. Come and help educate and motivate others to speak out about Gov. Walker’s bad budget.

Times and locations are as follows:

Madison: South Central Federation of Labor, 1602 S. Park Street #212, Madison, 53715

Contact: Wendy Strout – wstrout@aflcio.org for further information or to RSVP.

Monday, 6/29 - 3p–7p 

Tuesday, 6/30 – 3p-7p 

Wednesday, 7/1 - 3p–7p 

Thursday, 7/2 - 3p–7p 

Monday, 7/6 - 3p–7p

Tuesday, 7/7 - 3p–7p

Wednesday, 7/8 - 3p–7p 

Thursday, 7/9 - 3p–7p

Milwaukee: Wisconsin AFL-CIO, 6333 West Bluemound, 2nd Floor, Milwaukee, 53213

Contact: Emily Kitchin - ekitchin@wisaflcio.org for further information or to RSVP.

Monday, 6/29 - 3p–7p

Tuesday, 6/30 – 3p-7p

Wednesday, 7/1 - 3p–7p

Thursday, 7/2 - 3p–7p

Monday, 7/6 - 3p–7p

Tuesday, 7/7 - 3p–7p

Wednesday, 7/8 - 3p–7p

Thursday, 7/9 - 3p–7p

Kenosha: UAW 72 - 3615 Washington Rd., Kenosha, 53144

Contact Justin Geiger - jgeiger@wisaflcio.org for further information or to RSVP.

Tuesday, June 30

2 PM – 6 PM

Tuesday, July 7

2 PM – 6 PM

Thursday, July 9

2 PM – 6 PM

Eau Claire: Eau Claire Labor Temple, 2233 Birch Street, Eau Claire, 54703

Contact Andy Thompson, athompson@wisaflcio.org

Tuesday, June 30

4 PM – 7 PM

Wednesday, July 1

4 PM – 7 PM

Wausau: Wausau Labor Temple, 318 S. 3rd Ave., Wausau

Contact Sabrina Johnson, sjohnson@wisaflcio.org

Tuesday, June 30

4 PM – 7 PM

Thursday, July 2

4 PM – 7 PM

Wisconsin Rapids, LIUNA Hall, 220 Johnson Street

Contact Sabrina Johnson, sjohnson@wisaflcio.org

Wednesday, July 1

4 PM – 7 PM

Make your voice heard! Working people coming together to participate in democracy makes our state stronger. The time is now to raise your voice against Gov. Walker and the Republicans’ disaster budget that will be a lasting negative impact on generations to come. 

Protect Higher Ed in Wisconsin

Over a century ago in 1904, University of Wisconsin President Charles Van Hise declared that he would never be content until the benefits of the university reached every family in the state. Since then, the people of Wisconsin have proudly come together to help fund a public university system that is a crown jewel of our state. For a hundred years, any academically-prepared young person, regardless of his or her background, has had the opportunity to get a quality college education without going into massive debt. It has been a critical pathway to success for generations of Wisconsin’s working families.

Union members play an essential role in making our UW-System function. From heating and maintenance, to cafeteria work, janitorial crews, teaching and administrative support – working people all come together to make our UW-System one of the finest in the world.

Now, Gov. Walker and his allies in the legislature are attacking the very foundation of our higher education system. They’re calling for massive cuts to funding levels, the removal of shared governance that gives faculty, staff and students a voice in decision-making on UW campuses, and the elimination of tenure, one of the fundamental principles of academic freedom that protects learning and research from political interference.

Members of AFT-Wisconsin -- the union for faculty, academic staff, and graduate employees -- members of AFSCME -- the union for classified staff – and Building Trades members who do skilled trades work on campus are sounding the alarm and fighting back against these dangerous proposals to our UW System. Please take a moment to sign the petition.

Click here to sign the AFT-Wisconsin petition to protect our University of Wisconsin.

Devastating cuts to our UW System: Just a few decades ago, over seventy percent of the UW System’s budget came from public funds. Now, it’s well under 20%. Slashing another $250 million from UW campuses will lead to course and program cuts, increased class sizes, crumbling campus infrastructure, diminishing academic excellence and job loss -- and will deal a massive blow to the local Wisconsin economies that depend on their UW campuses as an engine of local economic growth.

Destruction of Shared Governance: University shared governance reflects values that every union member will recognize: whether it’s a steel mill or a college campus, a workplace functions best when the people who work and learn there have a voice in making critical decisions. Scott Walker wants to eliminate shared governance and have our campuses run by a Board of Regents that only he appoints.

Abolishment of Tenure: Faculty tenure and equivalent job security for academic staff are critical for universities to function. It frees research and teaching from politics. What happens to the search for truth when you can get fired for reaching conclusions that don’t support the party line?

Reckless Privatization of Campus Services: Hardworking classified staff provide the essential foundation of a strong university and campus. These services range from janitorial to grounds keeping, administrative to cafeteria work. This budget further incentivizes campuses to privatize whole departments like they did with janitorial and grounds crew workers at UW-Superior. At UW-Superior, a private firm hijacked services resulting in low-wages for workers and subpar services for students. Not only were good-paying, family-supporting jobs eliminated -- the quality of the work suffered. Everybody loses in the privatization of public services.

A century ago, as a people Wisconsinites decided that an affordable world-class public university system benefitted everyone in our state. We were willing to support it, and together we built a system that became a model for the world. Now our precious University of Wisconsin System is facing an attack driven by extremist ideology and political ambition.

Tell Scott Walker and his friends in the legislature that this is our University of Wisconsin System. We built it and we won’t stand by as they try to tear it down.

Click here to sign the AFT-Wisconsin petition to protect higher education in Wisconsin

Against our Values: Federalizing Wisconsin’s Family and Medical Leave

As the Joint Finance Committee meets this week to finalize the budget, there could be many harmful amendments to working families slipped into the budget at the last minute. In an ongoing affront to democracy, Republicans’ pattern has been to jam controversial issues that hurt working families into the budget during late-night sessions without proper democratic debate or notice to the public.

One possible amendment that could get slipped into the budget is an attempt to weaken Wisconsin’s Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). This could also come in the form of a separate bill.

Federalizing Wisconsin’s Family and Medical Leave Act goes against Wisconsin values of fairness, justice and family support. Wisconsin’s Family and Medical Leave is a lifeline relied upon each year by countless workers going through the difficult task of caring for themselves or for a family member facing a medical emergency. Wisconsin’s Family and Medical Leave Act allows a worker to take appropriate leave after the birth of a child or when an illness falls upon themselves or a family member.

Wisconsin’s Family and Medical Leave Act is stronger than existing federal law, but Republicans have been trying to weaken Wisconsin’s family leave and deny many workers the ability to take leave to care for themselves or family members.

Call your legislators today and tell them to stop any attempt to federalize FMLA protections for Wisconsin families. Click here for contact information.

Here are some of the ways that Wisconsin’s Family and Medical Leave Act is better than federal law:

Better eligibility requirements: Under Wisconsin FMLA you are eligible for leave after 1,000 hours of work which includes paid time off. The Federal law requires 1,250 of work excluding paid time off. This is a huge loss for part-time workers.

The right to substitute accrued time: Under Wisconsin FMLA, the employee chooses whether to substitute accrued paid leave of any type for unpaid leave under the Wisconsin FMLA. With the Federal FMLA, the employer can force the employee to substitute paid vacation, personal leave and compensatory time for any type of federal FMLA leave.

More protections for workers at small work locations: Under Wisconsin FMLA you are eligible for coverage if your employer employs 50 or more people in the state. Under Federal FMLA the employer has to have 50 employees within a 75 mile radius. This will exclude many employees at smaller chain establishments as well as employees in rural areas.

The right to take intermittent leave: Under Wisconsin FMLA, you can take intermittent leave for all family and medical emergencies in increments equal to the shortest increment permitted by the employer for any other non-emergency leave. Federal FMLA permits intermittent leave ONLY when necessary for serious health conditions, not for birth or adoption of a child.

As we celebrate Father’s Day this weekend, we are reminded that we should be strengthening paid leave to build strong families in Wisconsin. Rolling back Wisconsin’s Family and Medical Leave protections erode a worker’s freedom to care for a loved one or themselves during a time of need. Instead of further weakening workers’ rights and crumbling our familial support systems, the Wisconsin Legislature should focus on boosting our sluggish economy by creating jobs, raising wages for workers and investing in our outdated infrastructure.

Wisconsin families need to keep their voices strong as the budget hits its final deliberations and stay vigilant of any last minute sneak attacks against worker rights, wages and issues important to working families.

Fast Tracking Job Loss

Reports are coming in that the U.S. House could vote on Fast Track trade legislation as early as Friday. Fast Tracking bad trade deals like the Trans-Pacific Partnership would outsource Wisconsin jobs and drive down wages in a race-to-the-bottom. Wisconsin is still bleeding jobs from NAFTA; we don’t need another NAFTA-style trade deal like the Trans-Pacific Partnership to be rushed through Congress in an up or down vote with limited debate.

URGENT: Now is the time for the voices of working families to be heard. Make a quick call to your Representative today, urging them to vote NO on Fast Track trade legislation.

We are gaining momentum with union members and working people across Wisconsin and the United States, making it clear that we need to stop Fast Track. Unfortunately a handful of House Democrats, including Congressman Ron Kind from Wisconsin’s 3^rd Congressional District, are joining with Republicans to support Fast Track Trade Promotion Authority. 

The vote in the House is going to be close and we need all hands on deck to stop Fast Track.

Call your Representative today to see where they stand on Fast Track. Stopping Fast Track of the Trans-Pacific Partnership is crucial to protecting good jobs and strong communities for workers across the globe.

Wisconsin workers have already lost too many jobs to bad trade deals. Fast Track trade authority of the Trans-Pacific Partnership would ship good jobs away from our communities, drive down our wages and give corporations even more control over our lives.

We need fair and balanced trade deals that protect the rights of workers, our environment and food and drug safety standards. There is a way to make fair trade rules that put people and the planet before profits, but Fast Track isn’t it.

"Hey Ron Kind can't you see? TPP is bad for me."

Citizens from Wisconsin and Minnesota gathered outside Rep. Ron Kind’s Eau Claire office on Wednesday to urge the Congressman to stop Fast Track Trade Promotion Authority.  Fast Track Trade Promotion Authority is a way to rush through trade deals by limiting legislative review and debate, requiring Congress to vote a trade deal up or down without amendments. The U.S. House is expected to vote on Fast Track legislation this week or weekend.  

Congress is set to Fast Track the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) -- a massive trade deal between the United States and 11 other countries that would lower wages, ship Wisconsin jobs overseas, weaken food safety standards and roll back environmental protections.

"We don't need free trade, we need fair trade and everyone at the table," explained Judy Gatlin, a member of AFSCME 1914 who protested outside Rep. Kind's office. "It's important to oppose the TPP because it's so secretive.  What we do know about the trade is bad for workers, the environment, and our vulnerable citizens.  We've had 20 years of 'free trade' not working and we don't need any more."
 
The spirited group marched and chanted Hey Ron Kind can't you see?  TPP is bad for me.  They join a growing movement from New York to California and in-between of working people who are speaking out and urging their elected representatives to stop Fast Track of bad trade deals.  Working people want good jobs and better wages – not a corporate-controlled trade deal that puts profits ahead of worker rights and environmental protections.  

Roger Pope, a concerned community member took the time to rally outside of Rep. Kind’s office stating,  "I'm sick and tired of corporate forces calling the shots when it's the workers that keep this country running."
 
In twenty years NAFTA has cost American workers 700,000 jobs.  How many jobs are we going to lose with the Trans-Pacific Partnership?  The public deserves the necessary time to debate and fully understand the ramifications of this massive trade deal.

"We've lost too much already; we're fighting for better wages, promoting the middle class, and getting better jobs," said Donald "Stitch" Stuttgen, a retiree of CWA 4640.

TAKE ACTION:  Click here to call your U.S. Representative and urge them to STOP Fast Track of the Trans-Pacific Partnership.  

Join in! Make a call to Stop Fast Track

The time to stop the Fast Track of job-killing trade deals is now or never. Today, Wednesday June 3, is a nationwide call-in day to stop Fast Track. Call 1-855-712-8441 and tell your Representatives to STOP Fast Track of bad trade deals.

Fast Track trade promotion authority, a terrible trade negotiation policy, recently passed in the Senate. Now, Congress is back from vacation and they’re expected to bring Fast Track to a vote any day. Many of our elected officials can still be moved--especially if we remind them that we vote and we don’t want trade deals that cost Wisconsin good jobs.

Call our Wisconsin Representatives today and ask them to oppose Fast Track right now.

Today, people all over the country are making calls to their lawmakers to let them know that working families absolutely cannot afford another bad trade deal.

Join in! Call 1-855-712-8441 and tell your Representatives to STOP Fast Track of bad trade deals.

We need to let Congress know we’ve got the facts and we don’t support Fast Track. In the past, deals that were passed using the Fast Track process deepened our trade deficit, weakened our manufacturing sector, pushed wages down and increased the 1%’s control on our economy. More of these bad policies will shrink our paychecks and stifle middle class growth.

Not only does Fast Track encourage the passage of bad trade deals, but it will also tie the hands of Congress and prevent them from improving bad deals or telling the negotiators the deal won’t get a vote unless they go back to the drawing board. We deserve better than a policy that limits Congress to a simple up or down vote on trade deals that will affect working families everywhere.