Saturday, August 27, 2011

Governor Scott Walker's attack on Wisconsin's working class begins to go into effect. So many taking a pay cut will really help the economy.

Wisconsin’s Day of Impact


By Elizabeth DiNovella, August 25, 2011
Eric Cobb is getting a lot of email today. Cobb, executive director of the Building Trades Council of South Central Wisconsin, has been hearing from members who are feeling the effects of Governor Scott Walker’s budget. For the first time, their paychecks reflect the cuts rammed through the legislature earlier this year.
“In February, people didn’t want to talk about what was going to happen with the cuts. People were in denial,” Cobb told me on the phone. “They can’t do it anymore. They got their checks today or yesterday. Now I’m flooded with email from them.”
The so-called budget repair bill requires most state workers and many other public employees to pay steep increases for pension contributions and health insurance.
According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, for the average state worker making $50,000 a year, the deductions add up to a 9 percent cut, or roughly $4,400, in take-home pay. But many workers make less than $50,000 and for them, the cuts go deeper.

For rest of story: http://www.progressive.org/wisconsin_workers.html

“Some took a $200 hit on the first check,” said Cobb. “I have some non-represented custodial workers whose checks are annihilated. Now, people are saying they may have to drop their health insurance in order to feed their kids.”

No comments:

Post a Comment