Sunday, August 7, 2011
Wisconsin's school administrators are no longer subject to 'union meddling and obstruction.'
The repeal of much of Wisconsin’s collective bargaining law with regard to many of Wisconsin’s public employees has not been adequately explained. This repeal will do more to improve the quality and lower the cost of Wisconsin government than anything else we’ve done. There are approximately 275,000 government employees in the state of Wisconsin. About 72,000 work for the state, 38,000 for cities and villages, 48,000 for counties, 10,500 (full-time equivalent) for technical colleges, and 105,229 for schools. Only half of state employees are unionized, but almost all school employees are. As you can see, the biggest impact will be on Wisconsin’s schools. Since my office has received the most complaints from school teachers, let’s look at …
Monday, July 25, 2011
Permit for big game between East and West high gridiron squads is on agenda, along with much else.
We all hope the big fireworks will be on the field, but in any case, we'd also like to see some afterward. Coming this week in official business for Wauwatosa is an application for fireworks following the football game between Tosa East and West high schools scheduled for Aug. 20. That request comes Tuesday night before the Committee on Legislation, Licensing and Communications from the Red Raider Touchdown Club and the Tosa West Athletic Booster Club, jointly, in preparation for a celebration after the big game. The two crosstown schools have not met on the football field since 1996, and the boosters of both schools want to make it a party. There will be a community tailgate in Hart Park starting at 4 p.m. before the 7 p.m. game. Also …
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Changes had been discussed all year as Gov. Walker and the state Legislature acted, but council actions officially do away with different rates for union workers.
In moves no doubt being mirrored in some form in communities across Wisconsin, the Wauwtosa Common Council approved measures Tuesday night that spell the end of union collective bargaining influence on compensating city workers. One resolution, passed unanimously, did away with any difference between union and non-union employees in health insurance contributions, excepting fire and police, raising the rate for formerly protected employees from 3 percent to 10 percent across the board. Another eliminated all but one health care plan, doing away with negotiated options and allowing the city to set up plans with higher deductibles. "These two little items are a big deal," said Ald. Peter Donegan, chairman of the Employee Relations Committee…
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Monday, July 18, 2011
New teacher evaluation program, two years in the making, could be toppled by edicts from Madison.
People who think that Wisconsin's acts to curtail collective bargaining rights for teachers and cut state aid to schools are just cut-and-dried, good-or-bad decisions may not realize just how many headaches the measures are causing for school districts on seemingly unrelated topics. Long-range planning that could not have taken into account the sudden changes imposed by the Legislature and the governor turns out to be luck-of-the-draw planning. If it somehow fits with the state's plan, that's great. If not, it's back to the drawing board or out the window. Monday night was a perfect example of how nearly any Wauwatosa School Board agenda item can turn into a discussion of "how this stands on the new horizon." A small item, spending $3,000 …
Monday, July 11, 2011
Tosa Schools officials for the first time talk openly about reducing courses, enlarging classes and worries about hiring and retaining good teachers.
As June came to an end, the Wauwatosa School District, with a lot of relief and a touch of triumph, succeeded in overcoming the most difficult time it had faced in memory – balancing its budget against a $6.5 milliion shortfall brought on by the budget battle in Madison. Success didn't come easy or without great sacrifice: A one- to two-year pay freeze and higher pension and health insurance payments for every employee of the district was the price of keeping nearly everyone employed and protecting student learning from being compromised. Now, with almost no pause for breath, the district is taking up the next challenge: Dealing with flat revenues for the foreseeable future in a world where the pay structure for teachers might as well have…
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Dane County Circuit Judge Maryann Sumi struck down the state Legislature's budget repair bill which eliminated most collective bargaining for most public workers.
A Dane County judge today struck down the controversial budget repair bill that eliminated most collective bargaining for most public employees. Dane County Circuit Judge Maryann Sumi released a 33-page decision Thursday nullifying Act 10, which prompted thousands of protestors to crowd the state Capitol for weeks. But the decision, posted on The Wheeler Report, will not end the litigation. The state Supreme Court has been asked to consider the case, and state legislators are preparing to re-insert the collective bargaining changes in the state's 2011-13 budget. At least one legislator — Independent Rep. Bob Ziegelbauer of Manitowoc — is trying to add police, fire and other public safety workers to the collective bargaining changes. They …
Craig
4:34 am on Wednesday, October 19, 2011
What citizens did he call "slobs"....all of them (us) or did he identify a specific group that behaves a specific way? It is an unfortunate reality that some groups deserve/earn negative description....it is also an unfortunate reality that groups earning negative description lower the bar for everyone and impact the ability for serious people with divergent positions to effectuate positive … more ›