"The county did not have a true budget crisis at the time and county officials failed to give the union representing the security guards an opportunity to make some alternative cost-saving proposals before laying them off, according to the decision from arbitrator Amedeo Greco."
Steve Schultze, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
| "Thou shalt not oppress an hired servant that is poor and needy, whether he be of thy brethren, or of thy strangers that are in thy land within thy gates: |
| At his day thou shalt give him his hire, neither shall the sun go down upon it; for he is poor, and setteth his heart upon it: lest he cry against thee unto the LORD, and it be sin unto thee." Deuteronomy 24:14,15 Old Testament, King James Bible" |
"The laborer is worthy of his hire.
1st Timothy 5:18
New Testament, King James Bible
The hypocrisy of the Religious Right, who continue to try to make us a theocracy rather than a secular nation, never ceases to amaze me.
I recall growing up the adult lesson taught me by my parents that there are good frugal decisions, but that there are also some bad outcomes from the wrong cost cutting measures, that trying to get by 'on the cheap' can often come back to bite you in the backside - sometimes HARD.
It was part of my parents' lectures on being penny-wise and pound-foolish - as Wisconsin Governor Walker appears to have been. He also appears to be power grabbing and dishonest, and guilty of what I usually term 'Republican Math" where the numbers just never add up, to the detriment of everyone. Well, everyone loses, except a few top percentile wealthy who always seem to benefit, almost miraculously, unless you believe it was planned; (becaues it is usually planned).
This seems to be the case as news is coming out across the nation - and presumably across Wisconsin - about the really bad and dishonest 'executive decisions' of Governor Walker while he was in charge in Milwaukee. What a shame this decision was not available to the citizens of Wisconsin last fall before the election; they would have had better information on which to vote.
Because I like to go to the local sources whenever possible, here is what the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel published back in January 2011:
Milwaukee County must offer to reinstate courthouse security guards
Arbitrator rules against Walker's privatization By Steve Schultze of the Journal Sentinel
Milwaukee County must offer to reinstate 26 courthouse security guards who were laid off nearly a year ago when then-County Executive Scott Walker replaced them with private guards as an emergency budget measure, according to an arbitrator's decision issued Monday.
Walker was sworn in as governor last week.
The county did not have a true budget crisis at the time and county officials failed to give the union representing the security guards an opportunity to make some alternative cost-saving proposals before laying them off, according to the decision from arbitrator Amedeo Greco.
Greco's ruling also said the $125,000 annual savings from privatizing the courthouse security estimated by county officials was overstated by nearly $53,000.
"It's another example here of penny-wise, pound-foolish," said Patricia Yunk, policy director for District Council 48 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. She said Walker's emergency outsourcing move of courthouse security was an example of how his strategy of punishing unions that failed to agree to concessions went awry.
The ruling calls for immediately hiring back the laid-off county workers with back pay, with any unemployment compensation or wages from a new job subtracted. It also called for a guarantee of at least 180 days of work - the amount of time that Greco said should have been given to the security guards' union to react to Walker's privatization plan.
No estimate was immediately available of the cost of the back pay or the number of former county security guards laid off last year who might want their old jobs back. The private firm G4S Wackenhut was hired by Walker to replace the union workers. The Wackenhut guards are being paid up to $10.50 an hour, about $5 an hour less than the union guards made.
The County Board rejected the security outsourcing idea in November 2009, when Walker tried to get the move included as part of the 2010 budget.
But Walker unilaterally ordered it last March, saying the county faced a potential 2010 year-end deficit of about $7 million.
Wackenhut is being paid $1.1 million a year under its contract with the county for security at the courthouse complex, as well as for City Campus, 2711 W. Wells St., and the Vel Phillips Juvenile Justice Center in Wauwatosa.
Acting Corporation Counsel TimothySchoewe said he couldn't comment on the arbitrator's ruling because he hadn't seen it yet. Acting County Executive Lee Holloway declined to comment. Walker couldn't be reached immediately.
Oddly enough, I can't seem to find anything more recent in the SJ than this: By Steve Schultze
Arbitration ruling could cost $430,000 County guards to get back pay
An arbitration ruling ordering Milwaukee County to rehire Courthouse security guards laid off last year could cost the county $430,000 in back pay, supervisors learned Wednesday.
The figure was calculated by the county and provided to members of the County Board's Transportation and Public Works Committee.
Still up in the air: How many of the 27 county guards will want their jobs back, and the status of the private firm brought in last year as an emergency budget measure.
Public Works Director Jack Takerian said the county was sending letters to the 27 laid-off security guards about whether they wanted their old jobs back.
A ruling issued earlier this month by arbitrator Amedeo Greco said Gov. Scott Walker erred last March as county executive in privatizing the security guards as a unilateral measure taken in a budget emergency. The county at the time faced an estimated budget deficit of $7 million, though that figure has dwindled to $2 million or less.
Greco's ruling said the county had overstated by one-third the estimated $153,000 annual saving from privatizing security guards at the courthouse complex, the Vel Phillips Juvenile Justice Center in Wauwatosa and City Campus offices at 2711 W. Wells St.
Takerian said he didn't expect that the county would cancel its contract with G4S Wackenhut, the private firm now handling security at those buildings. But Wackenhut's duties could be scaled back at one of the buildings if some of the county security guards reclaim their old jobs, Takerian said.
He said he wouldn't mix Wackenhut and county security guards at the same work site because that could "create an uncomfortable situation." The Wackenhut workers are paid up to $10.50 an hour, or about $5 an hour less than the union guards made.
Supervisor Mark Borkowski said he supported Walker's decision to privatize the security force. But Borkowski said he was troubled by the way the county's projected deficit numbers have varied.
He said he feared the ultimate cost of the arbitrator's ruling could be higher than the $430,000 estimate. The ruling called for back pay to the laid-off guards minus any unemployment compensation or pay they may have gotten from a new job.
Deputy County Corporation Counsel MaryAnn Grimes said it was unlikely the county would appeal the arbitrator's ruling.
This to my mind casts serious doubts on the claims by Governor Walker that there is currently any genuine fiscal crisis in the state of Wisconsin, and would seem to support the notion that he 'ginned up' another convenient crisis that he intended to take advantage of for purposes of union busting by making unfunded tax cuts (not unlike those other unfunded tax cuts by Republicans at the federal level in December).
And not only did Governor Walker NOT learn his lessons of being penny-wise and pound-foolish, he is setting up to repeat them. He is reputed to be planning to fire the union security guards at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and replace them with Wackenhut non-union contractors. While he employed Wackenhut at the Milwaukee County Courthouse, the man he put in charge was a criminal who had done jail time, including having been in trouble for engaging in inappropriate sexual conduct. Is that the kind of person you want responsible for the safety of teenaged and twenty-something co-eds? These would be the same Wackenhut whose employees who were the subject of embarassing photos of drunken sexual misconduct while guarding the American Embassy in Kabul:
Wakenhut employees in mid-debauch
Yes, THAT Wackenhut
Seriously - are these the people, who were drinking vodka out of each other's rear ends, that you want to put in charge of the security of a college campus, even if there would be financial savings - which is unlikely based on the events in Milwaukee that recently were decided by binding arbitration?Keep in mind, these words: Wackenhut, and "did not have a true budget crisis" and 'unfunded tax cuts'.And maybe it would be a really good idea to never, ever trust Republican Math; keep that in mind as well.
Milwaukee County must offer to reinstate courthouse security guards
Arbitrator rules against Walker's privatization By Steve Schultze of the Journal Sentinel
Milwaukee County must offer to reinstate 26 courthouse security guards who were laid off nearly a year ago when then-County Executive Scott Walker replaced them with private guards as an emergency budget measure, according to an arbitrator's decision issued Monday.Walker was sworn in as governor last week.
The county did not have a true budget crisis at the time and county officials failed to give the union representing the security guards an opportunity to make some alternative cost-saving proposals before laying them off, according to the decision from arbitrator Amedeo Greco.
Greco's ruling also said the $125,000 annual savings from privatizing the courthouse security estimated by county officials was overstated by nearly $53,000.
"It's another example here of penny-wise, pound-foolish," said Patricia Yunk, policy director for District Council 48 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. She said Walker's emergency outsourcing move of courthouse security was an example of how his strategy of punishing unions that failed to agree to concessions went awry.
The ruling calls for immediately hiring back the laid-off county workers with back pay, with any unemployment compensation or wages from a new job subtracted. It also called for a guarantee of at least 180 days of work - the amount of time that Greco said should have been given to the security guards' union to react to Walker's privatization plan.
No estimate was immediately available of the cost of the back pay or the number of former county security guards laid off last year who might want their old jobs back. The private firm G4S Wackenhut was hired by Walker to replace the union workers. The Wackenhut guards are being paid up to $10.50 an hour, about $5 an hour less than the union guards made.
The County Board rejected the security outsourcing idea in November 2009, when Walker tried to get the move included as part of the 2010 budget.
But Walker unilaterally ordered it last March, saying the county faced a potential 2010 year-end deficit of about $7 million.
Wackenhut is being paid $1.1 million a year under its contract with the county for security at the courthouse complex, as well as for City Campus, 2711 W. Wells St., and the Vel Phillips Juvenile Justice Center in Wauwatosa.
Acting Corporation Counsel TimothySchoewe said he couldn't comment on the arbitrator's ruling because he hadn't seen it yet. Acting County Executive Lee Holloway declined to comment. Walker couldn't be reached immediately.
By Steve Schultze
Arbitration ruling could cost $430,000 County guards to get back pay
This to my mind casts serious doubts on the claims by Governor Walker that there is currently any genuine fiscal crisis in the state of Wisconsin, and would seem to support the notion that he 'ginned up' another convenient crisis that he intended to take advantage of for purposes of union busting by making unfunded tax cuts (not unlike those other unfunded tax cuts by Republicans at the federal level in December).An arbitration ruling ordering Milwaukee County to rehire Courthouse security guards laid off last year could cost the county $430,000 in back pay, supervisors learned Wednesday.
The figure was calculated by the county and provided to members of the County Board's Transportation and Public Works Committee.
Still up in the air: How many of the 27 county guards will want their jobs back, and the status of the private firm brought in last year as an emergency budget measure.
Public Works Director Jack Takerian said the county was sending letters to the 27 laid-off security guards about whether they wanted their old jobs back.
A ruling issued earlier this month by arbitrator Amedeo Greco said Gov. Scott Walker erred last March as county executive in privatizing the security guards as a unilateral measure taken in a budget emergency. The county at the time faced an estimated budget deficit of $7 million, though that figure has dwindled to $2 million or less.
Greco's ruling said the county had overstated by one-third the estimated $153,000 annual saving from privatizing security guards at the courthouse complex, the Vel Phillips Juvenile Justice Center in Wauwatosa and City Campus offices at 2711 W. Wells St.
Takerian said he didn't expect that the county would cancel its contract with G4S Wackenhut, the private firm now handling security at those buildings. But Wackenhut's duties could be scaled back at one of the buildings if some of the county security guards reclaim their old jobs, Takerian said.
He said he wouldn't mix Wackenhut and county security guards at the same work site because that could "create an uncomfortable situation." The Wackenhut workers are paid up to $10.50 an hour, or about $5 an hour less than the union guards made.
Supervisor Mark Borkowski said he supported Walker's decision to privatize the security force. But Borkowski said he was troubled by the way the county's projected deficit numbers have varied.
He said he feared the ultimate cost of the arbitrator's ruling could be higher than the $430,000 estimate. The ruling called for back pay to the laid-off guards minus any unemployment compensation or pay they may have gotten from a new job.
Deputy County Corporation Counsel MaryAnn Grimes said it was unlikely the county would appeal the arbitrator's ruling.
And not only did Governor Walker NOT learn his lessons of being penny-wise and pound-foolish, he is setting up to repeat them. He is reputed to be planning to fire the union security guards at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and replace them with Wackenhut non-union contractors. While he employed Wackenhut at the Milwaukee County Courthouse, the man he put in charge was a criminal who had done jail time, including having been in trouble for engaging in inappropriate sexual conduct. Is that the kind of person you want responsible for the safety of teenaged and twenty-something co-eds? These would be the same Wackenhut whose employees who were the subject of embarassing photos of drunken sexual misconduct while guarding the American Embassy in Kabul:
 |
| Wakenhut employees in mid-debauch |
 |
| Yes, THAT Wackenhut |
Seriously - are these the people, who were drinking vodka out of each other's rear ends, that you want to put in charge of the security of a college campus, even if there would be financial savings - which is unlikely based on the events in Milwaukee that recently were decided by binding arbitration?
Keep in mind, these words: Wackenhut, and "did not have a true budget crisis" and 'unfunded tax cuts'.
And maybe it would be a really good idea to never, ever trust Republican Math; keep that in mind as well.
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