New, 2011: Currents events in Wisconsin and elsewhere have unleashed a torrent of writings, interviews and the like from UALE members on this subject. Those that have been brought to our attention are being added in below. If you have something you'd like to add, please bring it to our attention (post it to the UALE email list).
The following links and downloads were contributed by UALE email list members in response to a request for materials that counter current negative public discourse about public sector workes and their unions.
• from Don Taylor, UW School for Workers, Madison, WI
Don has kept us current with multiple posts and links from the frontlines. We've put them on a separate page.
• Mar. 10, Frank Emspak is interviewed on "Democracy Now"
"We have reached a turning point" www.democracynow.org/2011/3/10/we_have_reached_a_turning_point
• Mar. 6, from Kim Scipes
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gMnARsTdzPA
This video shows speakers from the Iraq Veterans Against the War, speaking on February 26, 2011, in solidarity with the workers of Wisconsin!
The IVAW members do something that there hasn't been enough of, in my opinion: tying the assault on workers and social services to the war and the US Empire. [The US spends more EACH YEAR on military-related issues than do our 14 closes military "competitors" COMBINED. The money spent on the military is money that cannot be spent on education, health care, rebuilding the infrastructure, high speed rail, addressing climate change (aka global warming), etc.]
We can have Empire, and try to rule the world (and we'll take your sons and daughters into the military, the only large scale jobs program existing today in the US) or we can take care of our people: we cannot do both!
Solidarity forever, domination never!
• Mar. 5, from Mike Konopacki
A fine article by Milwaukee historian John Gurda: www.jsonline.com/news/opinion/117438043.html
• Mar 5, from Paul Clark, Penn State
I had an op-ed on Public Sector Bargaining published in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette today. Thought it might be of interest. The url is below fyi. http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11065/1129711-109.stm
• Feb. 22, Steven Pitts, UCB has a blog on the afl-CIO web page:
"Attack on Public Employees Deals a Sharp Blow to Blacks" www.aflcio.org/mediacenter/speakout/steven_pitts.cfm
• Feb. 22, from Betsy Leondar-Wright, Class Action
: Class Action’s blog, “Classism Exposed,” has three new pieces about who is harmed by attacks on the public sector:
Author activist Bill Fletcher Jr. gives us the background of the struggle and points to social justice unionism as a way out in “Modern-day Pirates: the Republicans vs. the Public Sector”:
www.classism.org/modernday-pirates-republicans-public-sector
In “Caregiver Unions: Needed but Vulnerable,” labor journalist Steve Early recounts the rapid rise of unions representing home health care aides and child care workers, and what they’re up against now: www.classism.org/caringgiver-unions-needed-vulnerable
In “Who Gets Plowed in New York,” Class Action workshop facilitator Nicole Brown focuses in on classist decisions made by the city’s leadership, and of the misplaced blame placed on sanitation workers: www.classism.org/plowed-york
Growing public sector unions present an inviting target for the right-wing, neo-liberal onslaught, but they provide the services, from fire protection to child care, that we all need. The Wisconsin mobilization provides a model for state-wide and national pushback.
• from John Beck, MSU
Feb. 22: This is the link with some of the bills introduced in the new legislature which have been put on the “threat” watch list by the Michigan AFL-CIO www.miaflcio.org/component/content/article/299.html
For the newer “Right to Work Zone” bill, go to: www.uppermichiganssource.com/news/story.aspx?id=576244
• from Fred Lonidier, UCSD
Feb. 22: Wisconsin South Central Federation Of Labor Endorses General Strike If Gov Walker Signs Anti-Labor Bill http://www.scfl.org/
GENERAL STRIKE ENDORSEMENT:At SCFL's monthly meeting Monday, Feb. 21, delegates endorsed the following: "The SCFL endorses a general strike, possibly for the day Walker signs his 'budget repair bill.'" An ad hoc committee was formed to explore the details. SCFL did not CALL for a general strike because it does not have that authority.
Also passed was the following motion: "The SCFL goes on record as opposing all provisions contained in Walker's 'budget repair bill,' including but not limited to, curtailed bargaining rights and reduced wages, benefits, pensions, funding for public education, changes to medical assistance programs, and politicization of state government agencies."
• from Beth Almeida, National Institute on Retirement Security
Our organization recently teamed up the Center for State and Local Government Excellence to commission a report on public-vs private sector compensation. The results show that, contrary to some of the assertions being made in the editorial pages, state and local workers are paid less than their private-sector counterparts. Even after counting the value of fringe benefits (that are somewhat more generous in the public sector), a gap remains. The full report, titled "Out of Balance? Comparing Public and Private Sector Compensation over 20 Years" is available at www.nirsonline.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=395&Itemid=48
If you are looking for information on public pensions, our Public Pension Resource Guide contains a series of fact sheets, literature reviews, and other materials, which might be helpful educational tools. www.nirsonline.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=338&Itemid=116
The Center for Economic and Policy Research also published (May 2010) an excellent analysis of this issue, "The Wage Penalty for State and Local Government Employees"
See also "The Benefits of State and Local Government Employees", published at the same time.
• From Ellen Dannin, Penn State Dickinson School of Law
A helpful site that is focused on privatization is In the Public Interest.org (Be careful; the Chamber of Commerce has a similarly titled website, but it ends in ".com".)
On the issue of bloated public sector salaries and benefits, the next two links are articles about the NIRS study above, "Out of Balance" The third link below shows that the same thing is happening in the UK.
The Center for State and Local Government Excellence
Mother Jones, May 4, 2010
From the Telegraph.com.uk, Jan. 10, 2010 Record gap between public and private sector pay
• From Cam Duncan, Southwest Organizing School
www.world-psi.org is a good place to find articles, curricula, campaign materials and web page links to public sector unions globally.
Another good source: the PSI Research Unit has lots of pro-union, pro-consumer research reports on privatization and public service/workers, focusing on multinationals in water, energy, waste management and health care - most of them freely available.
• From Fred Glass, California Federation of Teachers, Oakland
On the California Federation of Teachers' website there is a page on our open-ended campaign, the Fight for California's Future. If you scroll to the bottom of the page, there is a link to resources, including brochures, pamphlets, comic books and a slideshow. These materials analyze the state budget crisis, put it in the context of a conservative assault on government, taxes, unions, and public employees, and propose fair progressive tax policies as the alternative to slow (in some states, rapid) death. The pamphlet "Talking Taxes" is the most analytic and programmatic. The Fight for California's Future page also links to a report on the conclusion of our recent 48-day March for California's Future.
• From Mike Grunko, SEIU 509
"The War on Public Workers", by Amy Traub in The Nation provides a clear analysis of why the right wing is waging such a vicious attack on public employees. "By attacking public workers, they can demonize "big labor" and "big government" at the same time, while deflecting attention from the more logical target of Middle America's rage: the irresponsible Wall Street traders, whose risky, high-profit business practices brought down the economy, and the lax regulators who let them get away with it...At its heart, the scapegoating of public employees is an insidious way to divide public and private sector workers who share many of the same interests..."
http://www.thenation.com/article/war-public-workers
• From Michelle Kaminski, Michigan State U
Public sector workers have been the target of much undeserved criticism lately. Just like UAW members were blamed for the auto industry crisis, government workers have also become scapegoats. This just keeps the focus off the real culprits -- capitalist elites who are steadily increasing their share of the pie, at the expense of working people.
One (of many) reasons why they've been so successful is the right-wing media's vilification of government, workers, and unions. But you can find other voices, even in the mainstream media. NPR's Talk of the Nation featured a half-hour segment, "What it's like to be a government worker", that had public sector workers from around the nation call in to describe what their jobs are like and how they are affected by the widespread mistrust of government. (No mention of unions, however.) To hear it, go to www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=126111833.
• From Fred Lonidier, University of California, San Diego
"Education is a Public Good" Statement from the UCSD Faculty Coalition
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=0AXNmldn-tcq0ZHJyMmoyal8xMWY0NnpiNGhu&hl=en
• from Donna Schulman, Rutgers
My SMLR colleague, Jeff Keefe, has crunched the numbers and proved that public sector NJ workers are NOT overpaid. Also, "public employees, particularly higher level professional employees, have fewer opportunities to work overtime than those who work in the private sector. Therefore, on an annual basis, full-time sta...te and local employees are under-compensated by 5.88% in New Jersey, in comparison to otherwise similar private-sector workers."
"Are New Jersey Public Employees Overpaid?" Jeffrey H. Keefe, Economic Policy Institute Briefing Paper #270, July 30, 2010
• From Beth Vernaci, AFSCME
I maintain a blog that collects information useful to public sector workers. We add new reports and articles almost daily. http://www.afscmeinfocenter.org/
To download a file, click the corresponding red download arrow.
Downloads
| Name | Description | Download | Edit | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Alive and Well in Madison | A Personal Account by Ken Mericle. 3/11/2011 |  | |
| Busting Myths About Unions and Public Services | from Elissa McBride: "This is presentation that I've been working on for AFSCME members and staff. It includes some material from Demos. The full version includes video clips, such as Saturday Night Live attacking public service workers and Ben Stein defending them. I took out the video clips to get it down to e-mailable size." | | |
 | Labor Notes workshop | Workshop on the public sector, given at Labor Notes 2010 conference. From Mike Prokosch, Community Labor United | | |
 | Proposed legislation on public sector bargaining | A list compiled by ATU of bills to limit public sector bargaining in 12 states-- as of 3/15/2011 | | |
| Public Sector Blues | Power Point Presentation by Thandabantu Iverson on the resistance of Atlanta workers (APSA) to assaults on the public sector. UALE conference, 2010 | |
