More on Wisconsin and the Collective Bargaining Issue

From NRO. Walker as Hitler

I was scolded, as you can read in the comments in previous blogs, for not mentioning that the legislation being enacted in Wisconsin included "elimination of collective bargaining rights for public employees." Interesting that the "anonymous" commenter is accusing me of telling a partial truth, when he, himself is not being totally truthful and is unwilling to reveal his identity.

No question, collective bargaining will be greatly curtailed, but not eliminated. I also did not mention that if this legislation is not passed, Governor Walker, who MUST balance the budget, said that he would be forced to lay off thousands of government employees instead.

Here is a factual summary of what Walker and the legislature is doing:

"Governor Walker is facing a $3.6 billion budget deficit, and he wants state workers to pay one-half of their pension costs and 12.6 percent of their health benefits. Currently, most state employees pay nothing for their pensions and virtually nothing for their health insurance.

Nationwide, state and local government unions have a 45 percent total-compensation advantage over their private-sector counterpart. With high-pay compensation and virtually no benefits co-pay, the...unions are bankrupting America — which by some estimates is suffering from $3 trillion in unfunded liabilities.

Exempting police, fire, and state troopers, Governor Walker would end collective bargaining over pensions and benefits for the rest. Collective bargaining for wages would still be permitted, but there would be no wage hikes above the CPI. Unions could still represent workers, but they could not force employees to pay dues. In exchange for this, Walker promises no furloughs for layoffs."

Read more here from the above article in NRO.

And by the way, I publish all comments that are not profane or totally off point.