Posted on 08/15/2011 11:07:59 AM PDT by UB355
WEAC issues layoff notices to 40% of staff By Erin Richards of the Journal Sentinel Aug. 15, 2011 12:02 p.m. |(114) Comments
Layoff notices have been issued to about 40% of the Wisconsin Education Association Council workforce, a total of 42 employees who work for the state's largest teachers union, Executive Director Dan Burkhalter confirmed Monday.
Burkhalter said that the layoffs and other budget cuts at WEAC are a result of Gov. Scott Walker's "union-busting" legislation.
“Right now we’re engaged in membership continuation campaigns," Burkhalter said in a statement. "We’ve made steady progress in signing up members and we anticipate further progress will be made as the school year resumes. Despite budget cuts and layoffs, our goal remains the same: to be a strong and viable organization that represents the voices of Wisconsin’s public school employees.”
The organization has been working to stay relevant in a time when state legislation has severely clipped the collective bargaining rights of teachers and other public workers. The legislation makes it illegal for local teachers unions to electronically deduct dues from the payroll of teachers, and local unions also have to hold re-certification votes.
The Wisconsin Association of School Boards estimates that about 275 school districts in the state are working outside of collective bargaining agreements and subject to the new legislation. About 150 or so districts are operating under contracts that were extended with their respective unions before the legislation passed.
” Only 40%? Oh well... It’s a start. “
Kinda like 5000 lawyers at the bottom of the ocean : )
“They’re playing the victim card as a political tactic.”
Most people would be cheering Gov. Walker and the Republicans for a job well done after learning of the layoffs—NOT changing their mind to vote democrat!
And no managers got laid off, They probably gave themselves a raise for improving efficiency.
The irony is so rich. The union is running out of money, so they cut 40% of their workforce. But the state and school districts aren’t supposed to do the same thing when they are running out of money.
“...state was supposed to be heavily Leftist, Democrat. ..”
Evidently, it...USED TO BE! Now, it seems, it AIN’T! And Hale’s smilin’ at the libs freaking out about it...
They passed Concealed Carry there too, which is making the libs lose what little minds they have left.
Delicious!
Are the employees of the WEAC uniomize, like most other union employee workers denied that right.
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As it turns out, most of the membership dues go to pay the organization's salaries and benefits, some of which are quite extravagant.
For example, according to its 2009 fiscal year IRS form, the organization employed 151 people and paid them $14,382,812. That's an average compensation total of $95,250 per employee.
But high-ranking union officials were doing much better than that. For instance, Dan Burkhalter, WEAC executive director, was raking in $242,807, with $177,366 in wages; government relations director Robert Burke hauled in $189,505, with wages of $128,428; information and communications technology director Nathan Harper made $189,528, with wages of $129,221; financial and membership services director Jane Oberdorf made $188,164, with wages of $131,328; affiliate relations director Robert Baxter was paid $186,461, with wages of $127,774; and collective bargaining director Daniel Holub made $165,112, with wages of $110,534.
And what about WEAC president Mary Bell, the union's public persona, who describes herself as a teacher from Wisconsin Rapids? She made $173,466, with wages of $138,031. That's on par with Gov. Scott Walker's salary of $144,423.
All totaled, those seven employees collected $1,335,043, with wages of $942,682.
Understand this. The State of Wisconsin had required that the local school boards deduct the teachers union dues from their checks and forward the money to the union. This practice has been stopped which requires the union to persuade the teachers to remit their dues to their union out of their pocket.
“...Kinda like 5000 lawyers at the bottom of the ocean : )...”
Or 5000 politicians with them...
Don’t think that didn’t go through my mind. ;^) Good one.
Ah, excellent. Guess all those loud mouthed Leftists will be moving out of the state since they always say they’ll move out of the nation if it goes that route.
Concealed Carry? The final nail?
Lucky Minnesotans!
Teachers unions account for a major chunk of Democrat party power, both in terms of cash and in terms of activism involving the kids they teach. Cut that, and the Dems will be in much worse shape for years to come.
They spent the payroll paying the protesters who sacked the capital
Ohio...Wisconsin...
Jersey, yer NEXT...
The union is laying off employees so that they can use the money saved from reduced payroll to contribute to their liberal politicians. You people just don’t have a grip on priorities.
Classic example of MSM bias. The unions never could deduct. They needed the State or local school district to do this on their behalf, and this the legislation forbade.
The Democrats depended on the same revenue from this mandatory extortion to fund their campaigns.
Sort of reminds you of the collapse of the Soviet Union, doesn’t it?
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