The Teaching Assistant Association (TAA) calls on Chancellor Biddy Martin to take a strong stance in opposition to Gov. Walker's budget repair bill. Her response to the bill to this point has been anything but.
Gov. Scott Walker announced his controversial "budget repair" bill Friday, which has prompted criticism and anxiety from lawmakers and state workers, including University of Wisconsin employees.
Gov. Scott Walker announced his controversial "budget repair" bill Friday, which has prompted criticism and anxiety from lawmakers and state workers, including University of Wisconsin employees. The bill includes a requirement for state employees to contribute to the state pension fund. Currently, there is no such requirement. The payment would account for about 5.8 percent of salaries this year and would save the state $30 million this year alone, according to the governor's office. The bill also would double the amount state employees pay for their health insurance from 6 to 12 percent. One of the more controversial aspects of the bill is the proposal to limit the collective bargaining power of unions. Discussions would be limited to only wage issues, and contracts would be limited to one year. The changes would apply to all public sector workers in Wisconsin with the exception of local and state police and fire departments. Further, the bill revokes the ability for all University of Wisconsin faculty and academic staff to collectively bargain. The bill also gives state employees the right to opt out of union membership. Walker said this would ease the added economic burden on workers. "This gives them an offset to the premium change and the pension contribution change," Walker said at a press conference Friday. The announcement sparked anger from Democratic lawmakers and union leaders. State Sen. Fred Risser, D-Madison, called the bill an "abuse of power" in a statement. "State employees have the right to negotiate in good faith with the state. Without a willingness to even discuss what concessions need to be made with state employees, the governor comes across more like a dictator and less like a leader," Risser said. Teamsters Local 695 sent a letter to Assembly Republicans denouncing the bill and calling for the representatives to vote against it. "Your party, the Republican Party, will forge its name into the annals of American Politics as the anti-freedom party. Hitler should be so proud. He burnt books while you burn rights," the letter said. "When you vote think of the children left behind and the families potentially harmed." In the press conference, Walker said he has contingency plans in place in case of a labor strike, including the possibility of activating the National Guard. University employees are concerned about the effects the bill would have on the UW System. UW System President Charles Pruitt and Board of Regents President Kevin Reilly sent a letter to faculty and staff, addressing the fiscal challenges the university and its employees will face in the upcoming years. "These reductions may be justified by the historic economic downturn, but that does not change the fact that UW campuses entered this recession in a trailing position, unable to offer total compensation packages comparable to our peer universities," the letter said. The Teaching Assistants' Association spoke out against the bill, saying it will harm the competitiveness of the university. "Whether we're talking about faculty or class assigned staff or graduate assistants, the people who make higher education happen in Wisconsin stand to lose rights and stand to suffer a loss of living standards that make it possible to dedicate their lives to the public service of educating Wisconsin students," said Peter Rickman, a UW-Madison law student and teaching assistant. "This bill is going to harm teaching and research at the University of Wisconsin and we are going to be suffering the consequences for decades," Rickman said. Student groups and various other organizations are planning multiple protests against the bill over the next week.
Following a weekend of weather atypical of February (and another Badger victory against another inadequate Ohio State team) I'm finding it easier to turn my sights toward the spring elections in April. Happily, election season has two components, and the first chance to vote in 2011 is today — the spring primaries.
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