Wisconsin State AFL-CIO Blog

Repeal the Cadillac Tax and Raise the Wage

Something’s going right for workers in Congress. This week, the House of Representatives is slated to vote on the repeal of the "Cadillac Tax" (a tax on good healthcare plans) and on the Raise the Wage Act.

These proposals are both union-backed and union-supported. Contact your Representative and Senator today and urge the repeal of the Cadillac Tax and the passage of the Raise the Wage Act.

Across the nation, fast food, airport, service and retail and union workers have been marching and striking, calling for $15 and a union. The momentum has made its way to Congress! It’s time for working people to get the raise we deserve.

The so-called Cadillac Tax taxes above average healthcare plans. This tax, slated to go into effect in 2022, hurts working people and union members especially who have come together in the collective bargaining process to negotiate quality healthcare plans using the power of collective action. Oftentimes, union members have chosen to forego higher wages or other benefits to protect quality and affordable healthcare plans. This should not be penalized.

No one should be penalized for having or providing good-quality healthcare. The Cadillac Tax not only gives incentive for employers to switch to worse healthcare plans, but higher costs would be passed onto workers in the form of lower wages or higher out-of-pocket premiums.

We are currently experiencing the longest period without a minimum wage hike since the creation of the minimum wage in 1938. Wages have not kept up with the rise in corporate profits, productivity, or the cost of living. A minimum wage of $15 an hour will make a difference in peoples’ lives.

Raise your voice for working families. Contact Congress today. Tell our representatives it’s time to raise the wage and repeal the Cadillac Tax on healthcare plans.

Remembering Ironworkers Local 8 Members Killed in Big Blue Accident on Twenty-Year Anniversary

Sunday marks the twenty-year anniversary since the horrific workplace accident at Miller Park. Three Ironworkers Local 8 members were killed on the job while working to erect the roof of Miller Park. The Big Blue crane was rated for wind speeds only up to 20 miles per hour. On the day of the accident, the winds were much higher and workers expressed concern about going forward with this major lift. The Big Blue crane collapsed killing Jeffrey Wischer, William DeGrave, and Jerome Starr who were working in the man basket of a nearby crane.

As we approach this solemn twenty-year anniversary, the Wisconsin AFL-CIO honors and remembers these three union brothers killed. We honor all those who have lost their lives at work and pledge to fight for safe working conditions for all so that everyone who goes to work can come home to their families.

“The anniversary of this tragic incident reminds us yet again of the need to let workplace safety be the primary driver of management decisions taken on the job,” said Stephanie Bloomingdale, President of the Wisconsin AFL-CIO. “No job is worth knowingly taking risks with the lives and livelihoods of the men and women doing the work. We best honor the memory of Jeffrey Wischer, William DeGrave, and Jerome Starr and all workers killed on the job by fighting tirelessly for the enactment and enforcement of stronger worker protections in every workplace.”

“No ironworker steps foot into Miller Park without thinking about the three brothers we lost that day,” said Tony Mayrhofer, Business Manager of Ironworkers Local 8. “The brothers and sisters of Ironworkers Local 8 will never forget our fallen brothers and sisters. We are united in union to protect life and safety while at work. Jeffrey Wischer, William DeGrave, and Jerome Starr will always be a part of our Ironworker family and brotherhood.”

“As we look back 20 years, worker safety is still paramount in the construction industry,” said Dan Bukiewicz, President Milwaukee Building & Construction Trades Council. “We pledge each and every day to continue to make advancements in worker safety, worker rights and on-the-job protections to decrease workplace fatalities and protect every person who steps foot onto a job site. On the twenty-year anniversary of the Big Blue Tragedy, we remember and honor ironworkers Jeffrey Wischer, William DeGrave, and Jerome Starr and our thoughts and prayers are with their families.”

The memorial sculpture “Teamwork” stands today behind home plate outside of Miller Park as tribute to Jeffrey Wischer, William DeGrave, and Jerome Starr, our ironworker brothers.

Wisconsin AFL-CIO President Stephanie Bloomingdale on the Resignation of Labor Secretary Acosta

Stephanie Bloomingdale, President of the Wisconsin AFL-CIO, released the following statement on the resignation of U.S. Labor Secretary Alex Acosta:

As Alexander Acosta steps down as Secretary of the Department of Labor, the labor movement renews our call for a Labor Secretary who will put the needs of American workers first and foremost by enforcing labor law, raising wages, and protecting the freedom of all workers to collectively bargain.

Today’s resignation by U.S. Department of Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta is the end of a tenure in office marked by a clear disregard for the interests of working Americans. As the leader of the federal agency charged with protecting and promoting workers’ rights, Secretary Acosta consistently demonstrated greater concern for the interests of corporate bosses. During his time in office, Acosta rolled back overtime protections for workers denying millions of Americans hard-earned wages, tried to make it legal for bosses to pocket workers’ tips, exempted certain seasonal workers from federal minimum wage increases and aimed to roll back child labor law.

Acosta’s willingness to implement policies that favored corporations over workers whose rights he was charged with protecting made him unsuited for the job.

The Secretary of Labor is more than just a cabinet member -- his or her actions directly impact worker wages, safety, retirement security and rights and protections on the job every single day. Deregulation and slashing workplace protections is a recipe for disaster. Working Americans deserve a strong Labor Department that defends workers’ rights instead of tipping the scales even further towards the rich and well-connected.

The official mission of the Department of Labor is “to foster, promote, and develop the welfare of the wage earners, job seekers, and retirees of the United States; improve working conditions; advance opportunities for profitable employment; and assure work-related benefits and rights.”

We call on President Trump and the U.S. Senate to nominate and confirm a new Secretary who is capable and willing to fulfill this mission.

Help more Americans join a union

For too long, employers have been able to violate the National Labor Relations Act without facing serious consequences, routinely denying working people the basic right to join with co-workers to make our jobs better.

Click here to find out how you can take action and shore up the right to join a union.

The collective strength of workers to negotiate for improved pay and benefits has eroded, and income inequality has reached levels that predate the Great Depression.

We need your help! There is crucial legislation in the House that could help workers regain our right to join a union.

Please add your voice and ask your representative to become a co-sponsor of H.R. 2474, the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act.

Restoring our middle class is dependent on strengthening the collective power of workers to negotiate for better pay and working conditions. Support the PRO Act and help us build an economy that works for all working families, not just the wealthy and well-connected.

Plumbers and Steamfitters UA Local 434 Saves Day at Eau Claire Trailer Park

Residents of Maples Mobile Home Park in Eau Claire can enjoy the July 4 holiday in their own homes thanks to the quick help and expertise of Plumbers and Steamfitters UA Local 434 members and apprentices.

The Maples Mobile Home Park has been having issues for a while. Parts of trailers have collapsed due to heavy snow. Sewage pipes were leaking, disconnected or otherwise inadequate after decades of use. In some places, sewage leaked onto the ground as children played nearby. Repairs were delayed or put off. And last week, an Eau Claire City Inspection marked 7 to 8 trailers unfit for human habitation due to sewage issues.

Residents would either have to vacate or make the needed repairs by Tuesday, July 2.

With park owners in Florida and disconnected from the situation, the local property manager and park resident began calling businesses to find someone licensed who was willing to make the repairs on short notice. 

After contacting over 40 different business, inquiring if they could come out to the park and fix the placarded trailers, the property manager was unable to secure repair work. Some businesses had said no, others said yes, only to later back out. Losing hope, Maple Mobile Home Park residents reached out to Representative Jodi Emerson (D-Eau Claire).  

When Rep. Emerson learned the situation had come to a crisis point, she quickly knew who to call.

“My first thought was, let’s check with the unions,” explained Rep. Emerson. “Who at the Plumbers can we call?”

Rep. Emerson reached out to Terry Hayden, President of the Wisconsin Pipe Trades Association, late Saturday afternoon and explained there was a big need at a local trailer home park. Hayden immediately said no problem and agreed to make the necessary calls.

On Monday morning, Russell Boos, Assistant Business Manager of Plumbers and Steamfitters UA Local 434, quickly got to work contacting local contractors, explaining that Plumbers Local 434 would cover wages and materials upfront and later work with the owner on the possibility of payment. He facilitated the project, working with local contractors, the local health department and local city health and plumbing inspectors to ensure proper people were on the job with proper supplies and that all the necessary permits were secured in time.

Scott Schmidt of Scott Schmidt Plumbing agreed to go in. He lined up the jobs and accessed what needed to be done. Then N.L. Stock, a local plumbing contractor, gathered apprentices and youth apprentices to take care of the work, teaching skills and real-life application of the trade as repair work was performed. Bartingale Mechanical agreed to come down to help with the inspection of homes.

“Plumbers Local 434 picked up all safety equipment from drop clothes to dust masks, respirators to rubber gloves and everything we needed for safety,” explained Boos. “At 8:00 am Tuesday about a half a dozen people showed up and we knocked out the work. It’s very unusual to have something like this pop up last minute. For all this work to happen in one day is a kind of miracle. It feels great to get the job done and help people. Instead of scrambling looking for another place to stay, people can be in their homes for the 4th.”  

Some repairs were simple fixes, and all were done with the aim to get the trailer to pass inspection. Plumbers note that long-term investment in trailers will be needed. But by 11:00 a.m. on Tuesday, July 2, all trailers had passed city inspection.

The skills, hard work, know-how and generosity of Plumbers and Steamfitters UA Local 434 members stopped people being homeless. When the call goes out, union members never fail to help people in need. The trailer park is home to many tenants and families that would otherwise have nowhere else to go.

Todd Bencke, Business Manager of Plumbers and Steamfitters UA Local 434 who made the decision to cover wages and materials regardless of final payment explained that, “this is a really good example of where licensed, trained plumbers are needed because we know what we’re doing. A lot of the stuff we found under the trailers was in disarray and not quality work. It was duct-taped or foamed together. Our plumbers are licensed for a reason. We are highly trained and skilled. We know what we are doing. We make sure it’s done right and done so it will last.”  

“Plumbers Local 434 came in and took care of it on such short notice,” continued Rep. Emerson. “I want to send a big thank you to UA Local 434 for stepping up when our community needed it. They put paying jobs on the back burner to ensure people could stay in their homes. It restored my faith in humanity.” 

“I’m very proud that when the chips were down and residents of the trailer park were on the edge of homelessness over our Independence Day weekend our union family stepped in to save the day,” said Terry Hayden, President of the Wisconsin Pipe Trades Association. “That’s what we do. The members and contractors of Local 434 are shining examples of the unwavering commitment to quality workmanship and deep dedication to our communities — that is the bedrock of the United Association.”

The Wisconsin State AFL-CIO is proud to share with you another great story of union members giving back to our local communities in time of need. We thank all Plumbers and Steamfitters UA Local 434 members, the Wisconsin Pipe Trades Association, contractors, Representative Emerson and all involved who helped our neighbors stay in their homes.

For local reporting on the issue, check out reporter Julian Emerson’s coverage from the ground.