Wire Tap - cwa local 4603

Local Election Results
Local 4603
May 2015
Contract Negotiations - Bargaining
AT&T Midwest Contract - Expired April 11th
Bargaining began on Thursday March 5, 2015
The poker game began. Who’s got the cards, and like any
card game, the ride is bumpy!
Bargaining began on March 5th, where the company only
presented regressive proposals to your CWA Bargaining
committee. The company’s proposals offered little if any
improvements, and in most cases were scaling back language
that would benefit the workers that will be covered by the
agreement.
 BARGAINING: is always built on trust between the
members, and the union bargaining team! Trust the
bargaining teams knowledge and experience during these
talks. They are doing the best they can for you!
 BARGAINING: is a strategy to provide improvements in
the contract language over the previous contract. The first
contract was not the best contract, it’s a starting point.
(Remember, the company is in the business of making
money, they don’t want to give it all away; the entire
process is to arrive at a balance between the two parties)
The two opposing forces in this equation are: Company:
Most amount of work/control for the least amount of
expense. Union Position: Most amount of wages,
benefits for members. Our union bargaining team does
the best they can in delivering the best contract for the
workers covered by that contract. It was the best they could
do at that time. They also plan for future negotiations when
they hope they can make improvements in future contracts.
(Baby Steps Forward) You didn’t buy your dream car,
boat or house on your first try did you? Do you get
everything you want all at one time?
 BARGAINING: a contract and dispensing bargaining
proposals as they occur as ala-carte information would be
impossible. The entire contract is a large document,
with many sections and articles. GIVE IT SOME
THOUGHT: (How could the bargaining team possibly
issue updates on proposals for a small or even an
exclusive section of the contract that may or may-not
make it to a final agreement. The bargaining team
provides a generic daily update on how things are going
until they have reached a point in the negotiations where
the entire contract before them has language that stands a
(Continued on page 3)
Balloting was completed at 8:30 p.m. at the CWA 4603
membership meeting held Wednesday, April 15, 2015.
Vote Totals for Nominees:
Lindy Raspberry
37
Edwin Maldonado 63 (2) Education
Wendy Fonseca
54
Kwami Barnes
58 (3) Alternate
Clarice Collins
35
Tim Case
35
Dru Zellmer
88 (1) Delegate
The top vote getter will attend the convention as a voting
delegate. The second highest vote getter will attend the
convention as a non-voting guest for educational purposes, and
the third highest vote getter will serve as an alternate in the
event that either of the
The 2015 CWA National Convention will be held in Detroit
Michigan June 8-10, 2015.
JUNE MEMBERSHIP - MEETING CHANGE
In an effort to energize membership meeting attendance, the
location of the CWA 4603 June Membership meeting has been
changed. The June meeting will be held outdoors at the CWA
4603 Union Office at 6511 West Blue Mound Rd. Favorable
weather conditions and a large turn out would be appreciated!
CWA 4603 Membership Meeting
Wednesday - June 17, 2015 7:00pm
CWA Local 4603 Office
6511 West Blue Mound Road
Milwaukee, WI
Please mark your calendars for this change!
Wisconsin Spring Election Results a Mix
On Tuesday, April 7, 2015, only a little more than 18
percent of Wisconsin’s voters took the time to cast a ballot.
That’s a little short of the 20 percent predicted by the state
elections officials.
Justice Ann Walsh Bradley was re-elected to the Wisconsin
Supreme Court for a third 10 year term, while the voters
approved a change to the state constitution regarding who will
serve as the Wisconsin Supreme Court Chief Justice.
The ballot initiative to change the Wisconsin State
Constitution was approved. The revision will change how the
state’s Supreme Court Chief Justice is selected. The referendum
will change the state constitution to allow for the members of
the court to elect a chief justice for the court from the serving
members. Previously the chief justice was elected by the voters
of Wisconsin as the justice with the most seniority, the longest
serving. The campaign for the change was not a grassroots
initiative but rather a business supported change to strengthen
businesses’ influence in the judicial branch of Wisconsin state
government. (See WMC Spends $600,000)
Other Races
Bryan Kennedy won the Glendale Mayoral race as well as S.
Omokunde for Milwaukee County Supervisor Dist. 10, Eddie
Cullen, Milwaukee County Supervisor Dist. 15 and Wendell
Harris MPS School Board District 2. All of these candidates
were endorsed by the Milwaukee Area Labor Council.
Conservative Bate & Switch
Perhaps you are familiar with the “Bate & Switch” swindle
that has become so popular with the economy and politics.
As the largest economy in the world, we must first
understand how we got to be the largest economy in the world.
The founders understood that a path for meaningful social
evolution was needed that was based on liberties and justice for
all, not just a few.
Quality education for the entire general public would be a
key element to create such a society. Intelligent, engaged voters
are essential to clearly understanding the intricacies of the
political issues of the day. They must be able to avoid being
mislead by deceptive information and they need to know enough
to participate and vote!
The conservatives who only serve the interests of the
wealthy interests are very adept at crafting catchy phrases to
deceive or disguise the real intent of their position on an issue.
Less government - Sounds very good until you take a
closer look. In a representative democratically elected
republic, aren’t we really the government? If our elected
officials are not creating rules to craft the society that we
want, don’t we have the opportunity to elect new
representation that will? Don’t we need government that’s
the right size to ensure a sound stable economy to provide
financial opportunities like jobs to support families and buy
goods and services to drive the economy. Don’t we need
safe neighborhoods, workplaces, quality infrastructure,
services and good schools? Affordable energy and access to
clean air and water are also necessities.
What does less government really accomplish? The
popular less government talk would have us believe that the
intent is to streamline our governmental operations and make
them run more efficiently, however if you look more closely,
persistent cuts in funding doesn’t necessarily make for
greater efficiencies. If you’re spending less, won’t you be
getting less? Who’s reaping the benefits from that strategy?
At the end of the last presidency before President Obama
here are a few things that were happening to all of us:
The stock market had crashed
The auto industry was in shambles
The real estate market was destroyed
Your home equity was destroyed
The banking system was destroyed
Your 401K was destroyed
Unemployment was on it’s way to 10%
The $7 trillion dollar Iraq war was in full force
The price of crude oil had gone from $25 per barrel to
$138 per barrel
Insurance costs for everyone doubled from 2001 to 2008
Do a little research from the links below to identify the
majorities in the house, the senate and the president, and connect
the dots. Shouldn’t we be holding them accountable?
https://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/history/
one_item_and_teasers/partydiv.htm
http://history.house.gov/Institution/Party-Divisions/Party
-Divisions/
When isn’t less, just really less? Shouldn’t we be looking for
the solutions that are really needed to address our problems?
Do not be taken in by clever deceptive messages.
Voter ID Will Take Effect
in Wisconsin
Here's What that Means
Brendan Fisher - PR Watch
The Campaign for Media and Democracy
The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to
strike down Wisconsin's Republican-backed voter ID
restriction, paving the way for the law to take effect in
upcoming elections.
The ruling is regarded as a victory for Governor Scott
Walker, who championed the law in Wisconsin and has
boasted about the state's voting restrictions as he makes the
case for a presidential run. Walker defended voter ID during
the 2014 gubernatorial race, declaring that "it doesn't matter"
if there is only one incident of voter fraud in each election,
even though as many as 300,000 Wisconsinites don't have the
forms of ID required under the law.
Wisconsin's law was enacted in 2011, but was only
applied in one low-turnout primary before being blocked by
state and federal courts. With the U.S. Supreme Court's
decision not to review an appellate court ruling upholding the
law, voter ID is now slated to take effect in Wisconsin. Legal
challenges to the law have reached the end of the line.
Here's how the reinstatement of voter ID restrictions will
affect Wisconsinites.
As many as 50 percent of black and Latino voters in
Wisconsin could face disenfranchisement: In Wisconsin,
only 53 percent of black adults and 52 percent of Latino adults
have driver's licenses, according to a University of WisconsinMilwaukee study cited by federal and state courts, compared
to 85 percent of white adults.
The black youth vote is at greatest risk under the law: 78
percent of African-American young adult men aged 18-24
don't have driver's licenses in Wisconsin, as well as 66 percent
of black young adult women according to the same study.
 As many as 300,000 registered voters in Wisconsin don't
have the forms of ID required under the law; for reference,
this is 12.5 percent of the turnout in the 2014 elections, where
an estimated 2.4 million Wisconsinites went to the polls.
 In-person voter fraud is effectively nonexistent in
Wisconsin: The forms of voter fraud that could be prevented
by a voter ID requirement don't occur at a statistically
significant rate in Wisconsin. Federal Judge Lynn Adelman,
who struck down the law in 2011, found that "virtually no
voter impersonation occurs in Wisconsin and it is exceedingly
unlikely that voter impersonation will become a problem in
Wisconsin in the foreseeable future," since with criminal
penalties a person would have to be "crazy" to engage in inperson voter fraud. In defending the law, Wisconsin's
Republican-led justice department "could not point to a single
instance of known voter impersonation occurring in
Wisconsin at any time in the recent past," Adelman noted.
Obtaining an ID before election day will be difficult: For
many voters, the trouble of obtaining an ID for voting--even if
it is free--will be difficult, and the burdens may not outweigh
the benefits. Just one-third of the state's Department of Motor
Vehicles offices are open full-time, and even then only during
(Continued on page 5)
( continued from page 1 - Contract Negotiations)
chance of being approved by a vote of the members.) If the
bargaining team were to issue updates on individual
proposals each day, it would only confuse the members as
to what was actually taking place, and once again, the
language may or may-not even make it into a final
comprehensive proposed contract.
 STRIKE: Once the strike vote has been taken, striking
becomes a resource for the union to motivate the company
in a favorable negotiating direction. Union leadership takes
this responsibility very seriously. If we walk off the job,
it’ll cost you money. If you’re not on the job, you’re not
getting paid! The question is; Will walking off the job
motivate the company into making a decent proposal?
When will you be allowed to return to work? Striking and
walking off the job is a resource of LAST RESORT! (The
union notified the company of a potential strike that would
take place on Tuesday April 14th at 11am. Up until that
point, the company had mostly been providing regressive
proposals. The actions of a potential walk out disrupted the
company’s operations and got their attention. The results
were 27 straight hours of the most favorable bargaining up
to this point, and all of the workers still got paid. The
company could see that the workforce was clearly serious
about making improvements and adjusted their proposals.
 INFORMATION: Being accurately informed about the
daily situation is critical. The local has numerous resources
you can use. The communications resources are not perfect,
but you have a role in this as well. Sign up for the text
updates, it is a reliable and trusted source for accurate
information. You also need to know the rules. If your
manager is threatening or making up new rules, report the
incident to your union steward to be investigated. DON’T
do anything that could result in your termination! The
union is your legal counsel on the job. Make sure your
actions allow for a reasonable argument in your defense.
How can you win an argument/grievance when you’ve only
left a trail of incriminating evidence?
 MOBILIZATION: “We can either hang together, or
assuredly we shall all hang separately!” (Ben Franklin at
the signing of the Declaration of Independence) Hang
together! We are all workers here. If we stand together
and our actions are done in a collective manner, it is less
likely that the company will be able to discipline some
individuals and not others when they were all doing the
same thing. There is some safety in SOLIDARITY! Stay
informed by communicating with reliable sources, each
other and your union stewards. When the Mobilization team
requests that you perform some action, participate. You may
question the effectiveness of the action, but if the action is
widespread, it will have an impact. The company would
prefer that you not see them sweat, but take a good look!
Remember it’s a rollercoaster?
Conclusion: Remember that as bad as you think your working
conditions are, at least their in the form of a written contract. If
there’s no union, there’s no contract and the working conditions
can change at the whim of the boss anytime. With a contract
you have an opportunity where you can improve the language,
but without a contract you’re just a wage slave.
Bargaining Update reports are available at:
http://district4.cwa-union.org/
The CWA 4603 Candlelight Vigil
CWA 4603 held a candlelight vigil on Saturday, April 15,
2015 to call attention to the expiration of the current contract at
midnight. About 175 CWA members and retirees attended the
event held in front of the AT&T Broadway office building. The
event attracted some media coverage, and also the attention of
the company Vigils were held across Wisconsin, and CWA
District 4 Midwest.
An Injury To One Is An Injury To All
Listen up kids, this is just how the system works.
Rule #1: We are all WORKERS!
Rule #2: When WORKERS go backwards, whether it’s pay,
benefits, working conditions, you name it eventually those same
regressions will filter throughout the entire job market.
(Remember the Scott Walker “Divide and Conquer” message
regarding unions, ACT 10, and now “R-T-W”?)
On the other hand, when some WORKERS make
improvements, those put pressure on other employers to do
better by their WORKERS. The improvements may filter
through the job market as well, but only if the WORKERS are
willing to take a stand and demand that improvements will be
made.
When there are many job opportunities for WORKERS with
comparable wages and benefits, employers either have to offer
similar wages and benefits or they will suffer from high
employee turn over. The employees will leave to go to a better
paying job, and the employer will be left with a job opening to
fill. (Training new workers costs money).
With the decline in union membership that began in the
1970’s, it’s become more difficult for WORKERS to provide
upward pressure to improve wages, benefits, and working
conditions resulting in exactly what we are watching everyday.
(Would flipping burgers at McDonalds for $15.00 per hour
change the scene? I think so!)
UNION
CALENDAR
May
12
Executive Board Mtg.
6:30 pm
Union Office
20
Membership Meeting
7:00 pm
Midway Hotel,
1005 S. Moorland Road,
Brookfield, WI
June
2
Executive Board Mtg.
6:30 pm
Union Office
17
Membership Meeting
7:00 pm
CWA Local 4603 Office
6511 West Blue Mound
Milwaukee, WI
CWA Strikes Against Autism
1 p.m. - Sunday, May 3, 2015
Classic Lanes Greenfield
5404 West Layton Avenue
Knock down pins and beers at the “CWA Strikes Against
Autism.” This charity bowling event includes unlimited bowling, awards
and a chance to win door prizes. Proceeds from the event will benefit
Wisconsin’s Early Autism Project.
WEAP, Wisconsin’s Early Autism Project, is a local organization
that’s making leaps in current treatment methods. Autism, a neurodevelopmental disorder which impairs social behavior. The disorder can
start as early as infancy and affects as many as one out of every 68
children born in the United States.
WEAP provides the some of the most effective treatments. Their
refined practices utilizes methods from the current ABA treatment model
with findings from recent research. Evidence shows that the treatments are
working. Statistics have shown 50% of WEAP clients were able to
achieve average IQ scores and attend school without special education.
As communication workers, Autism hits close to home. Our members
connect people across the world with current media. Yet, Autism
disconnects thousands of children in our communities. Join us in
connecting children with their future.
Registration costs $12 for an afternoon of unlimited bowling which
includes pizza and beverages starting at 1 p.m. Participants will bowl for
titles like “Top Bowler” and can win door prizes. To register, contact
your local union hall.
THE CWA
For information and updates,
please visit the CWA 4603 web
page at:
cwa4603.com
WIRETAP
MONTHLY PUBLICATION OF
THE COMMUNICATIONS WORKERS OF AMERICA
LOCAL 4603
6511 WEST BLUE MOUND ROAD
MILWAUKEE, WI 53213
PRESIDENT ............................. GEORGE WALLS
EXEC. VICE PRESIDENT …........ GREG TENNYSON
VICE PRESIDENT ..................... KIM WARD
SECRETARY/TREASURER ......... HOLLY SHERARD
Wiretap Staff
CWA 4603
Membership Meeting
Attendance Award
At the completion of each monthly meeting,
those in attendance receive one raffle ticket. At the
next membership meeting a drawing is held to select
the winner of the $50.00 award.
YOU MUST BE PRESENT AT
THE DRAWING TO WIN!
OH CRAP! - Luis Santiago would have been
the winner of the Membership Meeting Attendance
Award drawn at the April meeting. He was at the
meeting, however he left before the drawing took
place and therefore forfeited the $50.00 prize.
Next months drawing will be worth $100.00
Bonnie Murphy, RMO
Richie Hinderholtz, Editor
Submissions Always Welcome
If you are interested in submitting an article,
cartoon or photograph for the newsletter, please
forward it to the CWA 4603 Union Office or
e-mail it to: wiretap@cwa4603.com
To contact the RMO Report
Write c/o RMO Report
6511 West Bluemound Rd.
Milwaukee, WI 53213
414-258-4010
1886 Bay View Massacre Re-enactment
Who Are The Job Creators?
129th Anniversary of the
Bay View Tragedy
3 p.m. - Sunday, May 3, 2015
Bay View Historical Marker Site
S. Superior St. and E. Russell Ave.
When it comes to economic policy, many politicians are
motivated to promote deceptive mythical messages rather than a
message founded on solid economic facts. A prime example
would be the myth regarding the job creators.
Republicans would have us believe that the job creators are
exclusively the brave titans of capitalism who, with no help
from anyone else, build the companies that create jobs for
American workers. Anything that inhibits these job creators in
their endeavors — taxes, environmental laws, financial
regulations — is a job killer and therefore bad economic policy.
This economic theory at its most simplistic has been proven
erroneous, over and over again. A dramatic example: The
financial debacle of 2008 that killed millions of jobs was, in
large part, the result of bankers and financiers being liberated
from federal regulations that had once served as a check on freemarket excesses. Nevertheless, conservative members of
Congress cling to the myth and continue to call for lower taxes
and fewer regulations.
An alternative economic vision is being promoted on the left
from an unexpected source. Nick Hanauer is part of the wealthy
1%. He is chairman of a family-owned manufacturing company
in Seattle, a venture capitalist who has made hundreds of
millions of dollars through smart investments and owner of a
private jet and five luxurious homes.
“I have started or helped start, dozens of businesses and
initially hired lots of people,” Hanauer said in his presentation.
“But if no one could have afforded to buy what we had to sell,
my businesses would all have failed and all those jobs would
have evaporated.
“That's why I can say with confidence that rich people don't
create jobs, nor do businesses, large or small. What does lead to
more employment is a circle-of-life-like feedback loop between
customers and businesses. And only consumers can set in
motion this virtuous cycle of increasing demand and hiring. In
this sense, an ordinary middle-class consumer is far more of a
job creator than a capitalist like me.”
As a result, Hanauer believes rich people like him should
pay more taxes that will fund investments in education and
infrastructure that will boost the earning power of the currently
beleaguered middle class. He is a particular fan of the $15 dollar
minimum wage that, he contends, would increase business
activity by putting more money in the hands of consumers.
“Since 1980, the share of income for the richest Americans
has more than tripled while effective tax rates have declined by
close to 50%,” Hanauer said. “If it were true that lower tax rates
and more wealth for the wealthy would lead to more job
creation, then today we would be drowning in jobs. And yet
unemployment and under-employment is at record highs. ...
“So here's an idea worth spreading. In a capitalist economy,
the true job creators are consumers, the middle class. And taxing
the rich to make investments that grow the middle class is the
single smartest thing we can do for the middle class, the poor
and the rich.”
This year’s program
features a re-enactment of the
Tragedy performed by the
Milwaukee Public Theatre
with the Milwaukee Puppet
and Mask Theatre. There will
also be a Commemorative
Laying of the Wreath/
Remembrance.
The program is free and open to the public.
It has become a popular event that calls attention to the
struggles of workers to achieve a greater quality of life through
a humane working day. Up until the 1886 tragedy, workers had
been campaigning through rallies, marches and other efforts to
establish the principle of the eight-hour day. The Milwaukee
rally for the cause ended with the State Militia firing into a
crowd of about 1,500 workers marching toward the old Bay
View Rolling Mills (Milwaukee’s largest employer) killing
seven. The dead included a thirteen year old boy who tagged
along with the crowd wondering what was going on and a
retired worker who lived in Bay View. He was struck down by a
stray bullet, as he was getting water and was not part of the
strike.
This event is sponsored by the Wisconsin Labor History
Society in cooperation with the Bay View Historical Society,
the Wisconsin State AFL-CIO and the Milwaukee Area Labor
Council.
Editor’s Note: The 8 hour work day would not become
law until the passage of the Fair Labor Standards Act in 1938.
(Continued from page 2 - Voter ID)
business hours. There is only one DMV office in the entire state
open on Saturday. Because most voters who will need to obtain
an ID don't drive, they will need to rely on public transport or
get a ride, making it even more difficult to get to the DMV
during the limited hours the offices are open. Last year, Walker
and legislative Republicans declined to extend DMV hours, and
refused to fund a new public education program to make voters
aware of the new requirements to vote.
The law had been put on hold for the Wisconsin Supreme
Court election, last month given that the ruling was issued so
close to election day. It is almost certain to be in effect for the
2016 presidential election.
Voter ID laws are most closely associated with the American
Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), whose founder Paul
Weyrich famously said "I don't want everybody to vote . . . As
a matter of fact, our leverage in the elections quite candidly
goes up as the voting populace goes down." Voter ID laws
swept the nation after ALEC re-adopted its "model" Voter ID
Act in 2009, following the election of Barack Obama with
record turnout from people of color and students and a 2008
Supreme Court ruling upholding Indiana's law. Scott Walker is
an ALEC alumnus.
Article provided by PR Watch.org
Merely An Observation
Between 1947 and 1979, productivity in the US rose by
119%, while the income of the bottom fifth of the population
rose by 122%. But from 1979 to 2009, productivity rose by
80%, while the income of the bottom fifth fell by 4%. In roughly
the same period, the income of the top 1% rose by 270%.
May 2015 RMO Report
We are all here on earth to help others; what on earth the others are here for I
don't know. . ~ W. H. Auden, English Poet
4603 Retired Members
Organization
President
Greg Burns
262-896-0451
Vice President
Gary Kierzek
414-861-2683
Treasurer
Christine Wunder
262-547-3775
Secretary
Carol Hassel
262-783-4181
From Chris Wunder, RMO Treasurer
The next RMO luncheon meeting will be held on May 20th at Meyer’s Restaurant, 4260 S.
76th Street beginning at 11am. If you are staying for lunch, reservations must be made.
Reservations and money must be into the local office, 6511 W Bluemound Rd, Milwaukee,
WI 53213 by May 13th. The cost is $10.00. Late reservations will no longer be accepted.
If you plan to attend just the meeting portion, please contact Chris Wunder, 262 547-3775,
so that ample seating is available.
At the May 20 membership meeting, our guest speaker will be Doug Bowring. He will
give a presentation on the Stars and Stripes Honor Flight. This is the organization that
flies vets to Washington DC for the day. It will be a very interesting and moving
presentation.
Don’t forget to save and bring the aluminum tabs from beverage and food cans to the
membership meeting—these are donated to Kathy’s House. As you travel, pack the unused
toiletries from the hotel and bring those to the meeting—these are donated to a health clinic in
the inner city who gives them to clients. And any old cell phones can be brought in and they are
either donated for calling cards for the troops overseas or to the women’s shelter who
refurbishes them for women of domestic abuse. These are things that get thrown away. We
can all help the environment by recycling them and putting them to good use.
From RMO Vice President Gary Kierzek
The following is from an article that I read from Rick Unger
who is a writer for Forbes Magazine regarding the passage of
Right to Work Laws in the U.S.
If you are anti-union, the path to right-to-work laws is
certainly one you will wish to follow.
However if you imagine that your support is the result of a
righteous belief that American workers are, somehow, being
denied choices in the workplace and that this grievance requires
redress, you are fooling yourself.
You can support these laws if you believe that lessening the
collective bargaining power of workers will bring business to
your state or that lower paying jobs is, somehow, in the interest
of the nation-- despite almost two generations of declining
growth in worker wages in the face of skyrocketing executive
compensation.
You can support these laws if you feel that it is appropriate,
and in the best traditions of the nation, to win elections by
denying Democrats critical funding at the very time when the
Supreme Court has dramatically boosted the ability of
Republicans to add millions to their campaign efforts.
However, if your concern is for fairness in the workplace,
don't be fooled.
While you may argue that having a job is better than not
having a job—no matter how low or unfair the wage paid for
that job maybe—right-to-work laws are not designed to do
anything to improve the lot of the American worker. At best,
they may result in a few low-paying businesses moving into
your state should your GOP controlled state government jump
on the right-to-work bandwagon.
But, in the long run, it is a pretty reasonable bet that all
working Americans will suffer as a result.
Cookie Cutter Right To Work Bills
Pop In Multiple States
By: Jody Knauss and Jonas Persson
The Center for Media and Democracy’s PR Watch
This past March, Gov. Scott Walker signed an anti-union
right-to-work (RTW) bill into law. RTW laws require unions to
provide the same representation and workplace services to all
workers in a workplace but make contributing to the cost of that
representation optional. They lead to smaller, weaker unions and
lower worker wages and benefits.
The Center for Media and Democracy detailed the fact that
the Wisconsin bill was taken almost word for word from the
American Legislative Exchange Council "model" bill. (See
CMD's side-by-side here.) And we reported on the Koch and
Bradley Foundation funding behind the panoply of usual
suspects that flew into the state to testify on behalf of the bill,
including "experts" from the National Right to Work
Committee, the Mackinac Center and the Heritage Foundation
with assists from ALEC "scholar" Richard Vedder and State
Policy Network "stink tanks" like the Wisconsin Public
Research Institute. And let's not forget the $1 million in TV ads
from the Koch-funded Americans for Prosperity group.
But the push for RTW continues in multiple states in a
variety of forms. From a legally dubious executive order in
Illinois to an equally suspect county-level strategy in Kentucky,
ALEC's effort to disable unions as an organized voice for
working families marches on.
Read the full article at: http://www.prwatch.org/node/12766
If hard work was the key to creating wealth,
wouldn’t the rich have kept it all for themselves?
‘Freedom’ Is For Bosses
Only Under Right-To-Work
By Ken Germanson - Wisconsin Labor History Society
Nomination for the most abused word in the English
language: FREEDOM.
Whenever corporations want to escape from regulations that
call for maintaining a safe and healthful workplace or that
require them to send uncontaminated food into the marketplace,
they trot out the word “freedom.”
How often have you heard it expressed that such rules are
needless inferences and stifle job growth? And hasn’t that been
followed with a plea for freedom from “the heavy hand” of
government?
In Wisconsin, the word freedom was misused again as the
proponents bum rushed passage of their anti-union law
prohibiting union shop agreements that call for all workers in the
bargaining unit to pay union dues or a fee for the cost of
representation. The proponents claimed the law was needed to
give workers the “freedom” whether or not to pay for union
representation.
Sounds good, doesn’t it? Who can be against freedom?
But the reality is that the misnamed ‘right-to-work’ law does
little to give workers any freedom in the workplace. Instead it
gives the boss greater freedom to force low wages, lousy
benefits and oppressive working conditions upon its employees.
Laws that ban union shop-type agreements have become all
the rage for Republican-controlled states; the fact is the laws do
nothing to help ordinary workers. The laws have three purposes:
1) to pay off the corporate donors of many Republican
candidates; 2) to weaken unions so that they become less and
less of a resource for worker friendly progressive legislation,
and 3) to give the bosses a union-free hand to push workers
around as they see fit.
It’s no secret that workers in an open shop situation will find
their union’s ability to represent them greatly weakened. In an
open shop situation, management’s power to force decisions
down the union’s throat is greatly strengthened as the bosses pit
worker against worker, thus taking away the basic solidarity
needed for effective representation.
Just like workers without a union contract, those in open
shop situations may find they have little say about their work
schedules, their time-off, their pay scales and their health
insurance, not to mention fair treatment on the job and a whole
host of things that matter most to them. Stories abound as more
and more non-union employers tell workers to stay for a doubleshift, to work without sufficient time off between shifts, to be
cheated out of overtime, to “work off the clock” (a typical habit
in the restaurant industry), to be given the most onerous jobs
over and over while the boss’ girlfriend gets favored treatment,
and to suffer other types of disrespect.
As the unions have weakened in the last 35 years, workers’
wages throughout the nation have stagnated while corporate
profits and rewards to the wealthy have grown many times over.
And if unions grow even weaker, there’s little hope of those
trends ever reversing course. All workers will suffer, not merely
those in unions.
The “freedom” promised to workers in the union shop
prohibition law (the miss-tagged right-to-work law) is a myth. It
only gives the bosses “freedom” to push workers around!
Trans-Pacific Partnership Deal would
Likely Raise Prescription Drug Costs
From The Alliance for Retired Americans Friday Alert
April 10, 2015
The coming Trans-Pacific Partnership Trade Deal (TPP) has
left many retirees concerned that their prescription drug costs
will increase if a deal passes. TPP will likely limit the ability for
the federal government to regulate drug prices and restrict
competition from generic drugs. Moreover, “fast-track”
legislation for TPP would, if passed, bring the agreement up for
a vote without an opportunity to amend the agreement.
At the recent Alliance Convention in Oregon, Fiesta said,
“Americans already pay the highest prescription drug prices in
the world. Seniors have a huge stake in this trade deal.”
The Alliance encourages members to call their member of
Congress to express their opposition to the trade deal.
Join the RMO Breakfast Bunch - Dutch Treat
All Are Welcome
1st Wednesday - 8:30 am
Meyer's
4260 S. 76th St.
3rd Tuesday
8:30 a.m.
Denny’s
11154 W. North Ave.
RMO Email List
– Please remember to update the
RMO with any email address changes.
Retiree Benefit Issues
Please Note: New contact info for
Alcatel-Lucent Benefit Rep.
Retiree Benefit Issues—Please Note:
Benefit Specialists are unable to help with
Medicare Supplemental Issues.
All other issues: First call your company’s Benefits Office.
If your issue is not resolved, then refer all problems to the
appropriate CWA Benefit Representative:
AT&T Legacy Midwest SBC
Holly Sherard - Local 4603 Office 258-4010
Alcatel-Lucent
Andy Wambach -800-296-3993
a.wambach@alcatel-lucent.com
[Legacy] AT&T
Kim Wilburn - 614-868-2215
kwilburn@ems.att.com
RMO Dues: $12 per year; $75 for 10 years; $100 for Lifetime. Checks payable to: CWA Local 4603 RMO.
Mail to CWA Local 4603 RMO, 6511 West Blue Mound Rd., Milwaukee, WI 53213
Office
Fax
cwa4603.com
414-258-4010
414-258-8542
6511 West Blue Mound Road
Milwaukee, WI 53213
CWA Local 4603
May 2015
Volume 46 - 5
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Permit No. 1293
U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
Non-Profit Organization
Rigging the State Budget Process Against the Workers
To prepare for its important deliberations, the Republican controlled Joint Finance Committee held only four public
hearings, and held those hearings during weekday working hours, making it extremely difficult for working men and women
to provide testimony. Further, it limited citizens’ testimony to two minutes; many citizens took off work and waited in line for eight
or more hours to only be able to speak for 120 seconds. Now, after receiving much-truncated public comment on the budget, the
powerful Joint Finance Committee members will begin its deliberations on the Governor’s proposed State Budget for all aspects of
the State Government. The Joint Finance Committee will approve, disapprove, or modify various proposals from the Governor, but it
also can introduce new proposals into the budget. Therefore, it is important that we keep a careful eye on its deliberations.
In mid April, the Joint Finance Committee worked on a number of State department budgets. One issue of concern for workers
on the docket is Splitting the Workers Compensation Division into Two Divisions.
Splitting the Workers Compensation Division into Two Different Departments is Bad for Workers
Wisconsin should be proud of its Workers Compensation Division: it is fair, efficient, and cost-effective. And yet, Governor
Walker’s proposed budget attempts to upend our Workers Compensation (WC) system by splitting its department and transferring its
many functions to two separate State departments.
Since its inception in 1911, Wisconsin’s WC system has been housed in one department, which is now known as the Department
of Workforce Development. Our current system has proven results that are beneficial for our workers and employers. If it isn’t
broke, why fix it?
Research has proven that:
 Wisconsin’s injured workers heal faster: they return to the work force on average 3 weeks faster than injured workers in other
states.
 Wisconsin’s system has lower costs, according to a 16 state study of worker injury claims by the non-partisan Workers
Compensation Research Institute.
 Wisconsin’s injured workers are able to navigate the system effectively, resulting in less litigation, which is beneficial for
workers and employers alike.
 Wisconsin’s WC premiums are stable and low: they have risen at a pace less than inflation over the past 6 years.
 Wisconsin’s great WC system is completely funded by WC premiums and does not take in one penny of tax-payer dollars.
We know that states who have split systems like Illinois and Texas have worse outcomes for injured workers. Wisconsin’s WC
system is one of the best in the country and it should stay that way. Joint Finance Committee Members should reject any proposal
that would split and transfer the Workers Compensation Division functions to other departments.