Wisconsin’s Republican governor has rejected any compromise with pro-union protesters who have filled the capitol for six days, predicting that his state would lead the US in weakening unions that have negotiated unaffordable compensation packages.
Democratic lawmakers, union leaders and rank-and-file teachers and firefighters called on Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker to back off his plan to eliminate most collective bargaining rights for government workers.
They said the unions had already agreed to cuts in their healthcare and retirement benefits that could reduce take-home pay for many workers by about 8 percent, and it was time for the Republican governor to compromise.
In a Sunday morning interview from Madison with Fox News, Walker said cities, school districts and counties would need to weaken unions to be able to cut spending for years to come. With all 14 Democratic senators still out of the state to delay passage of the bill, Walker said he would not compromise and predicted that Wisconsin would pave the way for other states to follow suit.
“We’re willing to take this as long as it takes because in the end we’re doing the right thing,” Walker said.
The sweeping measure led to massive protests that started on Tuesday last week and have gained steam, including an estimated 68,000 people who turned out on Saturday. Most opposed the bill, but the day marked the first time that a significant contingent of Walker supporters showed up to counter-protest.
The Wisconsin governor — elected in November’s Republican wave that also gave control of the state Assembly and Senate to Republicans — denied the bill was an attempt at “union busting.” He said the measure is needed to avoid layoffs of government workers and deal with the state’s projected US$3.6 billion budget shortfall for the two-year period that ends on June 30, 2013.
The bill would require government workers to contribute more to their healthcare and pension costs and limit collective bargaining to pay increases less than the Consumer Price Index unless approved in a local referendum. Workers could not negotiate their benefits and working conditions. Unions could not force their workers to pay dues and would face a vote every year to remain certified.
The dispute is being watched across the US because if Walker prevails in Wisconsin, other conservative Republican governors may try to go after powerful public employee unions as part of their budget-cutting policies.
Defeating the Wisconsin bill and others like it is crucial for public-sector unions, an important part of the Democratic Party base. US President Barack Obama and other Democrats will need the strong support of unions in next year’s elections — especially in key swing states like Wisconsin — to counter a huge influx of corporate funds allowed under a Supreme Court decision last year.
Nearly every major union leader — both public and private sector — has united behind an ambitious US$30 million plan to stop anti-labor measures in Wisconsin and at least 10 other states.
In Madison, hundreds of protesters gathered inside the Capitol on Sunday as snow turned into freezing rain that made walking outside the building a challenge.
The demonstrators banged on drums and danced in the Capitol Rotunda while they chanted: “This is what democracy looks like” and “Union busting!”
Nearly half of China’s major cities are suffering “moderate to severe” levels of subsidence, putting millions of people at risk of flooding, especially as sea levels rise, according to a study of nationwide satellite data released yesterday. The authors of the paper, published by the journal Science, found that 45 percent of China’s urban land was sinking faster than 3mm per year, with 16 percent at more than 10mm per year, driven not only by declining water tables, but also the sheer weight of the built environment. With China’s urban population already in excess of 900 million people, “even a small portion
UNSETTLING IMAGES: The scene took place in front of TV crews covering the Trump trial, with a CNN anchor calling it an ‘emotional and unbelievably disturbing moment’ A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former US president Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said yesterday. The New York City Police Department (NYPD) said the man was declared dead by staff at an area hospital. The man was in Collect Pond Park at about 1:30pm on Friday when he took out pamphlets espousing conspiracy theories, tossed them around, then doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire, officials and witnesses said. A large number of police officers were nearby when it happened. Some officers and bystanders rushed
HYPOCRISY? The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday asked whether Biden was talking about China or the US when he used the word ‘xenophobic’ US President Joe Biden on Wednesday called for a hike in steel tariffs on China, accusing Beijing of cheating as he spoke at a campaign event in Pennsylvania. Biden accused China of xenophobia, too, in a speech to union members in Pittsburgh. “They’re not competing, they’re cheating. They’re cheating and we’ve seen the damage here in America,” Biden said. Chinese steel companies “don’t need to worry about making a profit because the Chinese government is subsidizing them so heavily,” he said. Biden said he had called for the US Trade Representative to triple the tariff rates for Chinese steel and aluminum if Beijing was
Beijing is continuing to commit genocide and crimes against humanity against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in its western Xinjiang province, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a report published on Monday, ahead of his planned visit to China this week. The State Department’s annual human rights report, which documents abuses recorded all over the world during the previous calendar year, repeated language from previous years on the treatment of Muslims in Xinjiang, but the publication raises the issue ahead of delicate talks, including on the war in Ukraine and global trade, between the top U.S. diplomat and Chinese