Jay LaPrete/AP
Crowds showing their support of unions Tuesday outside the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus.
A new USA TODAY/Gallup Poll shows the public strongly supports employee bargaining rights. In the survey, 61% oppose a law in their state similar to one being considered in Wisconsin, compared with 33% who favor it.
The collective bargaining power issue has eyed for the chopping block in multiple states, courtesy of the GOP, to help ease money woes. These laws would limit the power of government employee unions to bargain over benefits and work rules.
Wisconsin is the first state to consider such a bill.
Do you support employee bargaining rights, despite the budget crunch? Please tell us why or why not in the comment section below.
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Now that they are clearly on the side of removing "representation" from "we the people"...can we now stop calling them the "Tea Party" !!!
George Washington called fake Tea Party mobs (Whiskey Rebellion, Shays Rebellion)....traitors! He said "The Tea Party was protesting the act of a King...with no representation....the Whiskey Tax was passed by a majority of Representatives in Virginia it is therefor "The law of the land"....he proceeded to march the militia to Pennsylvania where he put down the fake sloganeer Tea Party with bayonet and cannonball. Two were hung and many put on the gallows, nooses around their neck...drum rolls ....then pardoned....for being mislead about the law....and American Governments power!.....just like today!
The Headline should read: " Fake Tea Party shows it true hand.....Fascist King builders" removing "Representation" from the workers! How is that the Boston Tea Party???
It's like the Boston Tea Party patriots were getting paid by the coffee growers to throw the tea in the harbor....that never happened....it is now!
"Take our representation at your own peril !!!! " thats what the Greatest generation would have said.....you know the WWII vets who received "handouts" in the form of free college educations and Government subsidized housing! ...and built the greatest economic engine in the World.
Now the rich want it all!!!
I say enough talk....How did that last Civil War work out for your side ???
Nick. That is one of the smartest things I have ever read! Forgive me as I will be doing a lot of "copying and pasting" of your post :)
I'm hoping the petition recall of those 8 Republican senators that has started,
finishes quickly and lets the others know their terms are potentially in jeopardy next election. The governor is a...., I'm trying to think of an appropriate word here, beholden to the moneyed interests.
so it's ok to let this 'MOB" mentality run your lives?????????
This isn't mob mentality. This is protected speech and protest against the dismantling of fundamental workers' rights. We can have unions that put employees on an equal footing with employers in bargaining, or we can go back to the days of sweatshops when workers weren't allowed even bathroom breaks, people died of inhaling deadly fumes and fibers, and they had no healthcare to support them when their backbreaking work ruined their health.
The laws that Wisconsin Republicans want to enact have nothing to do with budget--the unions have already said they'd agree to pay cuts. It's the collective bargaining cuts the Republicans are trying to make that people are objecting to, because they have nothing to do with the budget and everything to do with union-busting and undercutting the foundation of the Democratic party in the state of Wisconsin. If this is mob rule, I'll take it.
You are correct - people gave their lives in this country to institute unions and if the Republicans, who sell their souls to the wealthy, think this country is going to get on a faster track of becomming a third world country, they don't have any knowledge of or faith in what the American people are capable of.
While watching the situation in Egypt evolve, I thought to myself that this is what will happen here in the United States of America if the Republicans continue to push lower and middle classes away from making a decent wage. There needs to be millions of workers in the streets right now before this gets away from us. It would be an outrage to the people of this country who died in the fight to institue unions, if the greed of some Americans defeat the rights of all Americans to collective bargaining.
Republican cronys on Wall St. pay off to get deregulation and no regulators by cutting their budgets....they then steal half the nations wealth in a Ponzi scheme like the Savings and Loan scandal (another Republican criminal act) ....Now! because their criminal actions starve the States budget, they blame the workers and middle class....right after they take another Trillion in unpaid for tax breaks for the richest 2%. Now they grind their heels into the necks of the middle class to weaken them further, so , nobody will be able to stand against them and their "unlimited, secret corporate campaign funds"!!!! AND YOU CALL THIS AMERICA? Fake Tea Party shills for the rich now move to take "representation away....while they tax we the people" Thats right "Taxation without representation"! exactly the opposite of what the Boston Tea Party....the only real one....was all about. Cutting open and fairly bargained contracts and pretending that this is not a tax is a cowardly lie! Its their money, Government is taking it away.....its a tax! With the people having no right to even speak....to the KING!
LOAD THE MUSKETS MEN.....ITS TIME TO BREAK THE CRONY PONYBOYS BACKS!
Thats exactly what the King of England called the American Revolutionaries....." a mob "! Thats right...and you won't forget it......you will not be the same when the dust settles. The Rich think they can hide...but 20 year olds can do more damage now than at any time in history. Take their future freedoms away at your own peril ! They will find and crush your rich flabby asses! Look around the world its happening everywhere....Glen Beck is right they are coming to take the millions he got for selling his Countrymen into slavery. Judas Goats are the first to go!
Simply beyond being the right thing to do.... how about, "it's the land of the free", or so we are told by Republicans, as they continue to hand over more & more to corporations that have the power to lobby on their side, now to buy into elections per the Supreme Court, but the American worker that has has no direct assess to their rep's, but a call or mail, that has had their vote watered down by corporate monitary influence, but they can't stand together as a group to negioatiate their salary & benefits? This is a scarm & a ploy. Unions reduce salaries all the time when necessary... Republicans simply do NOT WANT THE AMERICAN WORKER TO HAVE ANY POWER IN THE WORKPLACE. Endured servants is what they want at least here, for they have slave labor in most of the world!!
just as the governor has made this arbitrary decision not to negotiate...so too would all employers take a similar stance....
Unions are not some foreign entities...Unions are people like me and you..who want the best for ourselves and ourf amily...We want a decent life...we cannot leave it up to our employers to look out for us...
WE Cannot Go Back to the days of sweat shops....We Cannot go BACK to the days of less than minimum wage....no holidays...no sick time....no vacation time....not having a say in the workplace...being at the mercy of our employers.....
Noooooo...We Can Not Go BACK!
Tired of talking Steve...Remember what Palin told you to do? Lock and load! Well its time to put you weasels to the test! How did that last Civil War go for your side?
Without the right to Collective Bargaining, Gov Walker could lay off massive amounts without any recourse by the employees (because they've loss their right to collective bargain.) We have to secure this right.
"Power to the people!"
The Republicans are trying to divide and conquer the people as ususal. Let me suggest that before the gov. cuts the benefits and medical benefits for the teachers, administrative staff, etc let him start with the cogress anad senate, cut your own benefits now in the same amount you want the statae employees to take. Let every politician let go of all of those extra staff people they came into office with. Next cut the tax breaks they have given to businesses that ruin resources i.e. water air, and pollution. Then close the tax loopholes that allow the wealthy to pay little or no taxes. How about trying to equalize the tax burden. For the people who complain about time off the teachers have, stop hating. If your envious switch places with a teacher, so you can stand before the kids every day trying to interest them in the benefits of an education while their parents belittle the teachers. I'm sure there is a private school someonwhere that will teach your son or daughter 52 weeks a year, go find them.
This evening I listened as entrepreneurs and small busisness people talked about what they needed to help their businesses. Imagine my shock when they made comments like this. The government should help, the govt. should help fund more research and development, the govt. should be more involved in business start ups! Am I loosing my mind! These business people are asking the "GOVERNMENT" To help them. These are the same people who complain aboaut the govt. taking over businesses, Why aren't these people demanding the banks that received bail outs make money more readily available to small business. Unbelievable where are the congressman, the republicans who feel the govt is overly involved, find out how many of their entrepreneurs voted republican.
if you do not learn history - you are doomed to make the same mistakes... it seems the governor of Wisconsin and those in other states have no knowledge of history.... and they are all going to learn a lesson in the history of workers winning rights in this country - and I predict this lesson will come at their political expense....
as for Gov Christie saying that the only way to fix social security is to raise the age....
1. make the government give back the money they have pillaged from the fund 2. everyone pays into the fund to the maximum of their salaries.... no threshold of 125K ... all the rich folk pay - and social security is fine and dandy
Christy's a "wannabe" mafioso! a pudgy fat boy acting tough....with nothing behind it! he wouldn't last 2 minutes on the street...when people find out what he's really up to....their enslavement!
Bosses can make things up....fire you just before retirement. cut your retirement, disavow any understanding or agreement they made with you when you were hired....on a whim! or just to save a buck! You have no recourse, it happened without you even being represented....with no penalty to the ruling class or their pony boys! The complete right to steal from the working class to help the corporate bottom line of the Gilded Kings!
Why did we have an American Revolution? We would be treated better under English Rule than this!
The Koch Bros. were not on the ballot so why are they the winners. As soon as Gov. Walker busts the Unions for them, the next thing is going to be no bid contracts. This can not be allowed to happen. I strongly urge the Unions and citizens to fight this shadow government from being allowed to take over. Stay strong - you are fighting for the Democracy of the people of the United States.
It seems that the job market for the working and middle class in the entire US is in a critical crisis. Why is cutting jobs the most important issue in order to balance the budget. As far as these governors trying to bust the unions and make their state A RIGHT TO WORK STATE all they are doing is making it easier for people to lose their jobs for whatever reason a company choses to terminate an employee. I live in a right to work state and I am also a health care worker. If you aren't in a certain clique, a member of management decides they don't like you, a company wants to cut the higher paid employees out by replacing them with brand new graduate nurses who have no experience but start at the bottom of the pay scale, or a member of the upper management feels threatened by your superior work perfomance that you may one day have their job which makes living in a right to work state very difficult for public employees to continue to provide the top notch quality care they were trained for. Why is it that the working class and middle class citizens are always penalized because the government has went way overboard on their spending. The wealthy line the pockets of the politicians therefore they fight for their rights. The working class are trying to provide a comfort level of living for themselves and their children. It always seems to be public employees, education and the elderly that have to pay the penalties for the US Government failures. Not once has it ever been discussed that the Politicians take 30 % deductions in their take home pay. Not once has it been discussed that Politicians pay for their own medical expenses. Not once has it openly explained to the public that if GOVERNMENT cut its budget that every politician is being paid, benefits, travel expenses, pensions and other outrageous spending habits such as their socializing parties and redecorating the white house and the governors houses is on the table to cut then maybe workers could swallow this pill they are trying to shove down peoples throats. The US is so busy giving money to other countries that our government is willing to starve and make the citizens of the US homeless because they are just full of AMERICAN GREED.
I worked for many years for a county in Upstate New York. As Deputy Comptroller, it became very apparent where savings could be realized in every department of the county. The problems are the sacred cows, untouchables, and departments where the audits have to be with a bottle of Tums on your desk. These departments are used more or less as slush funds for the County Executive's, You find the most disgusting spending hidden in places that no one would ever find unless you are an auditor who is not afraid to write it up. These positions are held by non-union personnel who work at the pleasure of their boss. I finally got so disgusted I resigned. I took a big pay cut and returned to a civil service position with the protections of the Union and was able to save one department over 380,000 in one year by doing proper audits on the billing of one major supplier who consistently over billed that department.
who made us non-competitive? who outsourced everything to a communist slave plantation? now you want americans to compete with slaves? nobody...i mean nobody...can compete in the labor market against master driven slaves!!! its treason to even suggest it!
we would rather fight and die!
remember these words....you will hear them soon!
they will be the last sounds you hear!
fake tea party pony boys!
Many members of my family either currently belong to or at one one time belonged to a union. As I child I remember the anxiety of my step-mom going on strike and the struggle for my parents to pay the bills. I also remember the joys that came with the strike being over. This cycle took place about every 3 to 5 years growing, up and continues to this day for my parents.
At the time I believed that what the unions were doing was wonderful, but now that I am older I realize how greedy they were and continue to be. To think that you are entitled to a raise or that you deserve better benefits just because you have 10,15 or 20 years on the the job is ridiculous. You should only receive such incentives if you continually outperform your peers.
Constantly holding companies and state governments hostage for unrealistic demands has lead to companies going overseas and states going broke. I have heard some so called "experts" say that states like Wisconsin should just raise corporate taxes to fix their budget problems. That will only lead to more companies taking their businesses overseas and make the problem worse.
This is America, if you are willing to work hard enough, then someone is going to pay you a fair salary for good services. We need to get rid of this entitlement attitude. The Constitution only guarantees us the right to Life, Liberty and the PURSUIT of happiness.
Why doesn't anyone acknowledge that "Union Workers" ARE taxpayers! I am not in a union, nor were my parents. (Father was a dentist, but to put himself through college he worked at the Youngstown Sheet and Tube as a machinist. ) My son works as a machinist, but is not in a union. He won't get a raise because the company doesn't feel like giving him one, even though he comes to work everyday and works 10 hours a day and often times Saturdays and Sundays for 4 hours each. He has a great work ethic. Why do people think union members don't work? Or slack off on the job? My ex-husband worked his butt off! He NEVER called off sick or received vacation time. If it wasn't for the unions we would have mandatory working 7 days a week. They bargained to reduce the work week by the way. They created the "weekend". We wouldn't have had safety on the job requirements. The non-union companies would never have to "compete" and offer their employees wages that are at a rate that a middle income family NEEDS to pay their basic bills. I am a single mother with 3 school aged children and I can only manage $10 per hour even though I have worked since 1977. I have a B.A., but no specific skill. If someone has worked for 25 years in a union they were given the opportunity to receive competive wages, a pension and security of knowing that they will have a little nest egg at the end of their work years. Most public sector non-union companies do not have the employees in their best interst. If you don't like it~ there's the door, or they go bankrupt and you have nothing. No 401 (k), no pension. Don't forget the unions are a way for THE EMPLOYEES to have their grievances HEARD and a COMPROMISE is worked out. What is so WRONG WITH COMMUNICATING?
I have worked for a school system as a classified worker for 24 years. Being a single parent of two I qualified for reduced lunches because of low income. I promised my children I would never make them stand in a separate line to get those lunches. We found another way but that's the huge salaries we are accused of getting. Still I was proud of my job. Now the politicians have started to pit people against each other. Both sides for their own political gain. What saddens me the most is how well it works for them. Watching The Last Word while Lawrence explained how the Republicans are doing it for their political gains and the Democrats are doing it for their political gains made me really understand just how little the average working class means to government. It's such a game to them and so terrible important to the person living it. When did we allow such focus on the special interest to take over. Is there any hope for the next generation of average workers? However this works out will leave a bitter taste for a long time.
"I dont see how this is anyones problem but yours as I didnt spread your leggs."
You’re truly a classless act 'Steve'.
You show your true colors every time you open your mouth and stick your foot inside.
Steve,
I was not asking for sympathy. I am doing just fine now. I mentioned it because of the huge wages they say we all get. If that's what you took from that comment wow.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 48% of Likely U.S. Voters agree more with the Republican governor in his dispute with union workers. Thirty-eight percent (38%) agree more with the unionized public employees, while 14% are undecided.
A pure attempt to silent the vioce of the people, starting with the Unions. WE the people will not be silenced. They took our home, now they want to take our voice. Without Unions we would be working 16 hours for sweat shops like China. This is what the moneyhandlers want, cheap labor, no benefits, and no rights.
History has a tendency to repeat itself. Jesus threw out those that bought and sold in his Father's house and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers.