Labor
Scapegoating unemployed is tired political trope. Here’s what works to fix labor shortages.
Generous benefits are not keeping people on the sidelines of employment.
Michael Rosen and Charlie Dee
Wisconsin’s labor shortage is not the result of lazy people gaming the unemployment system. Yet that’s the excuse Republican lawmakers used to pass, without a single Democratic vote, a series of bills intended to punish the mythical lazy workers, most notably by cutting unemployment insurance benefits to as few as 14 weeks and making it more difficult for those out of work to qualify for them.
These politicians believe benefits are so generous that they ...
Corporate Crime
“The irony is that the nation I live in, once a beacon of democracy for my parents, is now dominated by corporations that value profit over people, safety and well-being,” Marta Tellado, CEO of Consumer Reports. Her parents fled Cuba in 1961.
Crime was a major issue in the recent election. According to the Republicans “crime is skyrocketing” and honest citizens are living in fear of widespread violent crime. “Criminals are “wreaking havoc on American cities” said Rep. Tom Tiffany despite his mostly rural northern Wisconsin congressional district having ...
Standing With Healthcare Professionals
After three calendar years on the frontlines of the pandemic and over 8 months of bargaining in good faith with Aspirus Health, healthcare workers are joining together with their neighbors to demand a fair contract from Aspirus, who received millions in federal relief money while the frontlines remain in a staffing crisis. Together, we can win better wages and working conditions and create a better environment for our patients!
A fair contract can keep nurses at the bedside where patients need them, but unfortunately, Aspirus refuses to listen. On Monday, June 27 we ...
Poor People’s Campaign rallies to Washington D.C.
We will have a full story in our next edition of Middle Wisconsin.
In 1968, Martin Luther King Jr. organized low-income Americans of different backgrounds in a march on Washington known as the "Poor People's Campaign."
Over fifty-years later, thousands of protesters gathered Saturday to deliver that same message at the Poor People's and Low-Wage Workers' Assembly and Moral March on Washington and to the Polls.
The rally urged low-income voters to participate in the upcoming midterm elections and featured religious organizations, pro-democracy groups, labor ...
Union Busting is Disgusting
Union busting is not only disgusting, but also illegal. You have the right to organize in your workplace.
Today several of us from the Marathon County Central Labor Council found ourselves at Starbucks in Plover. What brought us there was the illegal dismissal of a 21-year-old employee, Kolton. The reason for his termination was that he’d broken company rules by being in the back of the store while he was off the clock and being present in April after the store closed when he was off the clock. Kolton admits to this but also states the store policies are selecti...
Workers’ Memorial Day
Workers Memorial Day
April 28
Mourn for the Dead and Fight for the Living
On April 28, Unions of the AFL-CIO observe Workers Memorial Day to remember those who have suffered and died on the job, and to organize the fight for safer workplaces. We all come together to call for action on hazards that cause unnecessary injury, illness, and death. We stand United to strengthen workers’ rights and protections, and demand resources and actions needed for job safety enforcement. We fight for the fundamental right of every worker to a safe job until that promise is ...