Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen had asked appeals court to stay a rule by a Dane County judge that said parts of the collective-bargaining law are unconstitutional.
A Wisconsin appeals court Tuesday refused to put a hold on a judge's decision repealing major parts of Act 10, the law that ended collective bargaining for most public workers. Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen in September had asked the 4th District Court of Appeals to stay the ruling by Dane County Circuit Judge Juan Colas that portions of the law were unconsitutional. Van Hollen wanted to stay the decision while the case was being appealed. Colas refused in October to do so, and the state appeals court on Tuesday upheld that decision, according to the Wisconsin State Journal. The appeals court said it saw "no basis to set aside the circuit court's decision that a stay was not warranted," the State Journal reported. Today’s ruling likely …
Friday, January 18, 2013
Act 10, which essentially stripped public unions of their ability to bargain, was ruled constitutional on Friday in a federal appeals court.
The controversial state law that curtails collective bargaining for most public employees was upheld by a federal appeals court Friday. In ruling that Act 10 is constitutional, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals said the state had a rational reason for rolling back collective bargaining rights, and rejected arguments from public employees unions that they violated First Amendment rights, WisPolitics.com reported. The court overturned a decision by a federal judge last year that struck down parts of the law dealing with prohibitions on government employers withholding union dues from workers' payrolls and a section requiring labor unions to vote to re-certify yearly, the Journal Sentinel reported. A separate case challenging the law remains …
Saturday, September 22, 2012
Gov. Scott Walker talks about the Dane County judge's ruling on the state's collective bargaining law during this week's radio address.
The state partnered with the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association to produce and distribute brief radio address once a week. Audio files and a written transcript of this radio address can be accessed on http://www.wi-broadcasters.org and http://walker.wi.gov/Weekly-Radio-Addresses. To download an mp3 file, you can right click the radio address link and click “save link as.” Hi, this is Scott Walker. As you may have heard, recently, a Dane County judge in Madison issued a ruling that struck down key provisions of the budget reforms enacted late last year. We are confident this ruling will be overturned because Act 10 is constitutional. This would not be the first time a Dane County judge's decision on Act 10 was held to be wrong by a …
Saturday, September 15, 2012
Greenfield Mayor Michael Neitzke said if the court's most recent decision stands the impact could be dramatic.
As the state of Wisconsin begins to digest the decision of Dane County Circuit Judge Juan Colas declaring the state’s collective bargaining law as unconstitutional, municipal and school district leaders are left pondering, "What's next?" Colas's ruling came out of the blue and at a time when municipalities and school districts are in the middle of budget planning for the next fiscal year, or putting the finishing touches on budgets. Greenfield Mayor Michael Neitzke said preparing budgets and maintaining services has become increasingly difficult over the last couple of years. He said that has again been the case while preparing the city's 2013 budget, which he hopes to present to the Common Council and get approved in the next few weeks. …
Friday, September 14, 2012
As news of Dane County Circuit Court Judge Juan Colas' decision to strike down the state's collective bargaining law spread, liberals marked the ruling a win while conservatives took issue with it.
Just hours after Dane County Circuit Judge Juan Colas decided that the state’s collective bargaining law was unconstitutional, reaction from liberals and conservatives erupted. According to our media partners at FOX 6 News, Colas ruled Act 10 — the budget repair bill — as null and void because the law violates both the state and U.S. constitutions. Specifically, the law violates the guarantee of freedom of speech and citizens' freedom of association. The news heated up Wisconsin liberals and conservatives on social media sites, caused outrage and praise from elected officials, and pleased top union officials. A event page titled We Aren’t Backing Down! Tell Wisconsin Union Judges NO! was posted by a group called Founders’ Intent and …
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
Despite all the furor in Madison last year over the rights of public workers, new poll says Democrats are most concerned about jobs as they head to the polls in Tuesday's recall primary election.
When tens of thousands of demonstrators descended on the Wisconsin Capitol in February and March 2011, the protests were all about Gov. Scott Walker's budget-repair bill and how it changed collective bargaining for public employees. In fact, it was the outrage over the passage of that bill — known as Act 10 when it became law — that was the impetus for the effort to recall Walker from office. But with the Democratic primary election less than a week away, and the general recall election slated for June 5, the issue of collective bargaining has pretty much taken a back seat to jobs and other issues, according to a poll released Wednesday. The Marquette University Law School Poll says 46 percent of those who are likely to vote in Tuesday's …
Monday, April 23, 2012
State Reps. Jeff Stone, R-Greendale, and Mike Kuglitsch, R-New Berlin, praised changes in state law after Gov. Scott Walker announces the savings from collective bargaining limits for the public sector.
Local state lawmakers are praising Gov. Scott Walker’s announcement that the state’s controversial budget repair law that significantly limited public unions in collective bargaining has reached $1 billion in savings. "I think it's good news for tax payers that the changes that were made had a positive impact for school districts at a local level," said Jeff Stone, R-Greendale. Stone said he has seen a positive impact in Greenfield with more than $1 million in savings to taxpayers with contributions necessary to pensions. "It’s been a way to maintain the quality of staffing at a local level and reduce costs to taxpayers," Stone said. "When you look at this area that’s substantial savings." Rep. Mike Kuglitsch (R-New Berlin) said the …
Monday, August 1, 2011
The sides are at odds regarding added days and compensation.
It's the dawn of a new day from Greenfield teachers and district administrators, who are forging a new path with each other without the guidance of collective bargaining. Like it or leave it, collective bargaining created an environment in the past where teachers and administrators would be inclined to make an attempt to work toward common ground when hashing out such conditions of employment like the teacher work calendar. But now, after collective bargaining has been removed from the equation, a more hierarchical relationship between the administration - the employer - and the teachers - the employees - seems to be evolving. And with it, commonly used bargaining chips, like the school work calendar, that were once used during …
42.956725
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Greenfield School District
4850 S 60th St, Greenfield, WI
/articles/work-calendar-first-test-in-evolving-relationship-between-teachers-administrators
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Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Union president says he hopes for continued labor peace.
The effects of Governor Scott Walker's dismantling of collective bargaining has begun to take shape in the Greenfield School District, leading teachers to request a seat at the table for decisions once negotiated by their union. During Monday's school board meeting, Doug Perry, the president of the Greenfield Educational Association, publicly requested teachers have a voice in decisions pertaining to various employment issues and policies. They include the district's grievance procedure, the employee handbook, the school calendar and health insurance, Perry indicated during Monday's School Board meeting that was was attended by dozens of teachers and community members. "We realize that you don't have to include us anymore. We get that," …
42.956725
-87.988579
Greenfield School District
4850 S 60th St, Greenfield, WI
/articles/greenfield-teachers-ask-for-voice-during-district-decisions
1567759
/locations/4935233
Friday, June 10, 2011
Rep. Chris Kapegna, R-Delafield, says people are frustrated that public safety workers are exempt from the state's collective-bargaining changes.
A Republicans legislator wishes Gov. Scott Walker's plan to strip public employees of their collective-bargaining rights would have included police officers and firefighters, according to reports published today. Rep. Chris Kapenga, R-Delafield, told the Associated Press that police and fire workers "bought" an exemption to Walker's proposal, which affects tens of thousands of public employees in the state. Kapenga told the Wisconsin State Journal: There’s a reason why they are not being put in with the rest of the public employee unions. I don’t know what that reason is.
Fred Fischer
8:59 pm on Tuesday, March 19, 2013
Lots of emotions here. I would think there's more of an advantage to not collectively bargain. That way the best producers will be rewarded adequately and not be dragged down by the weak and/or lazy. Also, I don't think anyone should be forced to join a union. more ›