81 results for author: Joyce Luedke
WHAT’S A WOMAN WORTH?
What’s a Woman Worth? was the topic of discussion at the Women For Women of Marathon County meeting Thursday, May 4th. The pay inequity gap women face leads to the retirement gap later in life.
Kathleen Marsh, a retired teacher and author, Kay Johnson a retired teacher and advocate for public school students and staff, and Joyce Luedke, a retired teacher and writer for Middle Wisconsin presented a Power Point Presentation based on research and a PPP done in 2017 by the American Association of University Women (AAUW).
The discussions after the PPP were animated and lively as women shared their observations of a woman’s worth over the years....
Who Cares About Us?
More than 40 people were facing eviction from their “homes” if the Annabelle Apartments on Bridge Street were torn down to make room for another Kwik-Trip. We sat down with them and heard:
**“This is a community. We look out for each other.” “We’re like a family.”
**“We have a vested interest to keep this place safe, quiet, and peaceful.”
**“We’re in a panic.” “I don’t want to sleep under a bridge.” “I don’t want to be homeless again.”
***”Where will we go?” “This is about a person’s dignity.”
Although, Kwik-Trip withdrew their proposal to build a store at the Annabelle Apartments location, ...
FOUR DEATHS
Four people are dead in the Wausau community. Four families are grieving along with a shocked community. Thousands of people came to pay their respects to the fallen police officer. A woman who was abused and her six children will deal with the grief for the rest of their lives knowing what the husband/father has done. The families will never be the same. The Wausau community will continue to soul search and ask: how can this happen here?
What do Wisconsin Republican legislators do? Propose a bill that allows hidden deadly weapons to be carried without a permit. This is cruelty—plain and simple—not only to the four who died; but also to their ...
THE WAGE GAP
Laura Dresser, Ph.D, the Associate Director of COWS (Center on Wisconsin Strategy) spoke at the Interfaith Coalition for Worker Justice Breakfast February 13th, 2017 in Madison. Laura Dresser is a co-editor of The Gloves-Off Economy: Workplace Standards at the Bottom of America’s Labor Market. She is addressing issues on the connection between quality care, quality jobs, and minimum wages.
In her speech, Laura Dresser addressed the issue of the wage inequity working women face in the labor force.
***Women are paid less than a man for doing the exact same job.
***Women spend more time outside of the labor market.
***Women choose differ...
YOUNG AND OLD
Young and old, women and men joined together on the 400 Block in the center of downtown Wausau, March 4th, to raise awareness of the issues confronting us as a “people” living on planet earth. The March was organized by Women for Women of Marathon County. We opened with The Pledge of Allegiance and This Land is Your Land. We closed as one united people singing This Land Is Your Land.
Here are comments from “we the people” who stand united and want a more just and healthier world to leave to our children, grandchildren, and future generations. Each person I interviewed had a long list of concerns.
I. Immigrants and the treatment of ...
A WAY OUT OF NO WAY
“A Way Out of No Way: Women, Labor, and Justice Today” was the theme for The 17th Annual Faith-Labor Breakfast of the Interfaith Coalition for Worker Justice of South Central Wisconsin, February 13th, at the Bethel Lutheran Church in Madison.
The meeting opened with a Responsive Prayer For Justice.
Pray for those who are hungry. Pray harder for those who will not feed them.
Pray for those who struggle each week to pay their bills. Pray harder for the wealthy who do not care.
Pray for those who are homeless. Pray harder for those who deny them shelter.
Pray for the sick and lonely. Pray harder for those who will not give them ...
WHO CARES?
“Who cares?” was House Speaker Paul Ryan’s reply to a question from Scott Pelley on a 60 Minutes segment after Trump tweeted lies about the election.
The question “Who cares?” must be applied to the impact the repeal of the Affordable Care Act by the president-elect and Republicans will have on the lives of our fellow Americans.
***“Who cares” about people who were denied coverage for pre-existing conditions?
My Mom was a small business owner in northern Wisconsin and was the hardest worker I have ever known. One of her young employees was ill for several months with pleurisy. This employee’s family did not have health ...
CHARACTERISTICS OF A BULLY
1. Impulsive
2. Easily frustrated or annoyed
3. Lacks empathy, isn’t sympathetic to anyone’s needs or desires but their own.
4. Blames a victim for her/his behavior
5. Has difficulty following rules
6. Views violence in a positive way
7. Is motivated by power and the desire to dominate others
http://community.ksde.org/Default.aspx?tabid=3913
Bullying involves repeatedly hurting a victim with “teasing, name calling, mockery, threats, harassment, taunting, social exclusion or rumors.”
On a national level, these bullying tactics have taken on a cruel, abusive tone that hasn’t been evident for decades. Each day, news ...
WHAT IS TO BE DONE with the POLITICS OF RESENTMENT?
(This is the fourth article based on the book The Politics of Resentment: Rural Consciousness in Wisconsin and the Rise of Scott Walker by Katherine Cramer.)
Katherine Cramer says “So the problem, for me, is this. We are in a time of increasing economic insecurity and of stark policy bias in favor of the affluent, and yet the politics of resentment draws our attention to our animosity toward each other rather than in ways in which the political system is not working for anyone but the very few.”
1. Policy makers need “to reassess what is going on in rural places and reconsider the policy responses they have made to date.” “As I have ...
RETIREMENT PLANNING IN WISCONSIN
(Joyce Luedke is part of POWRS (Protect our Wisconsin Retirement System.)
Here is my summary of our June 24th POWRS Renewal Meeting with Karen Holden—UW-Madison Professor Emeritus of Public Affairs and Consumer Science.
Karen Holden referred to her research on retirement planning in the following articles.
http://www.ncpssm.org/RetirementSecurity/karen-holden-bio.pdf
http://aging.wisc.edu/research/affil.php?Ident=24
I. Financial literacy education.
A. This is crucial for the populace as a whole, but essential for people who do their own planning. Many people are vulnerable, especially women, when they are on their own. The Labor ...