Dane County District Attorney Brian Blanchard recently agreed to start prosecuting wage claims in accordance with the requirements of the Wisconsin Statutes. Previously, Blanchard had an announced policy of not pursuing wage claims because his office is understaffed. Activism by local groups put pressure on him, and now he has changed his policy. This reveals the power of the press and the ability of committed people to directly affect the local political process. It is an inspiring story of the power of the little guy in local politics.
Sadly, it is a not-infrequent occurrence that low-income workers will put in hours of their labor at a job and then not be paid for their time. There may be any number of reasons for this, from employers closing up shop to thinking they can get away with it because their workers are undocumented. Fortunately, the government helps protect workers from exploitation of this sort. Workers can submit their grievances to the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development, which investigates the allegations promptly and thoroughly. DWD seeks out evidence, including the employer's side and decides if there has been wrongdoing. Some of the time, they find the worker is owed his or her back pay. Under section 109.09 of Wisconsin statutes, DWD can refer these claims \to the district attorney of the county in which the violation occurs for prosecution and collection and the district attorney shall commence an action in the circuit court.""
That is where the problem crept in. Despite being told by the Legislature that he ""shall"" commence such actions, Blanchard wrote to DWD that he would not be prosecuting because his ""office lacks the resources to file and prosecute actions for collections of wage complaints."" He recommended workers who had been stiffed by their employers pursue civil actions in Small Claims Court for their lost wages.
In fairness to Blanchard, I note that his office is dramatically understaffed. By his estimates, Dane County is short about eight full-time attorneys. It is understandable that he would put higher priority on criminal cases, which directly respond to threats to public safety, than on civil cases. But worker advocates claim employers' refusing to pay employees is a form of theft. The Wisconsin criminal code contains criminal penalties for other purely financial wrongs such as writing bad checks. No one doubts that if employees dipped into the till it would be a serious crime worthy of the DA's attention.
That is where community groups got involved. Worker advocates started trying to change Blanchard's policy. They said he was alone among Wisconsin DAs in having a written policy against pursuing wage claims. Organizations like the Economic Justice Institute and the Interfaith Coalition for Worker Justice took time to meet with Blanchard to try and change his mind. They believed that failing to prosecute these claims was an abdication of governmental responsibility to workers.
The real success in changing Blanchard's policy came through the political process. Unhappy with his decision, local attorney Sally Stix decided to run for Dane County DA on the Green Party ticket. She publicly announced her intention at the Labor Temple, 1602 S. Park St. Amazingly, the South Central Federation of Labor voted overwhelmingly not to endorse Blanchard for DA. As a Democrat, this endorsement should have been a chip shot for Blanchard. Losing the endorsement showed Blanchard the political cost of failing to support workers.
Then the local press got involved, and the general public started to learn of the story. Faced with an opponent in the upcoming election, the opposition of community groups and the amazing non-support of labor, Blanchard changed his position. Just recently he sat down with community groups and agreed to prosecute a small set of wage claim cases. In particular, Blanchard plans to pursue those cases he considers criminal, including those involving employers who have allegedly repeatedly denied wages or situations of fraud. DWD and community groups are actively trying to find more money to help Dane County with these expenses.
This is a story of triumph. Brian Blanchard is an honorable man and a good district attorney. However, he was wrong not to prosecute wage claims. Convincing him of this showed the power of the press, activist groups and, perhaps most importantly, third political parties. Clearly, Sally Stix's challenge and the South Central Federation of Labor's refusal to endorse either candidate helped prompt the policy change. This demonstrates Blanchard's willingness to listen to his constituents. It shows that community actors can help shape local politics. It shows that the Green Party, as its adherents have long claimed, can help shift Democrats to the left. But most importantly, it provides hope that a concerned citizen can speak up and thereby help make a change for the better.
opinion@dailycardinal.com.
