Wisconsin's Republican governor on Sunday rejected any compromise with pro-union protesters filling the Capitol for a sixth day, predicting that his state would lead the way across the country in weakening unions that have negotiated unaffordable compensation packages.
Democratic lawmakers, union leaders and rank-and-file teachers and firefighters called on Gov. Scott Walker to back off his plan to eliminate most collective bargaining rights for public employees. They argued the unions had already agreed to cuts in their health care and retirement benefits that could reduce take-home pay for many workers by about 8 percent, and it was time for the Republican governor to compromise.
In a Sunday morning interview from Madison with Fox News, Walker said cities, school districts and counties will need weakened unions to enable them to cut spending for years to come. With all 14 Democratic Senators still out of the state to delay passage of the bill, Walker said he would not compromise and predicted that Wisconsin would pave the way for other states to follow suit.
"We're willing to take this as long as it takes because in the end we're doing the right thing," Walker said.
The sweeping measure led to massive protests that started Tuesday and have gained steam including an estimated 68,000 people who turned out Saturday. Most opposed the bill, but the day marked the first time that a significant contingent of Walker supporters showed up to counter-protest.
The Wisconsin governor -- elected in November's Republican wave that also gave control of the state Assembly and Senate to Republicans -- denied the bill was an attempt at "union busting." He said the measure is needed to avoid layoffs of government workers and deal with the state's projected $3.6 billion budget shortfall for the two-year period that ends June 30, 2013.
The bill would require government workers to contribute more to their health care and pension costs and limit collective bargaining to pay increases less than the Consumer Price Index unless approved in a local referendum. Workers could not negotiate their benefits and working conditions. Unions could not force their workers to pay dues, and would face a vote every year to remain certified.
The dispute is being watched around the country because if Walker prevails in Wisconsin, other conservative Republican governors may try to go after powerful public employee unions as part of their budget-cutting policies.
Defeating the Wisconsin bill and others like it is crucial for public-sector unions, an important part of the Democratic Party base. President Barack Obama and other Democrats will need the strong support of unions in the 2012 elections -- especially in key swing states like Wisconsin -- to counter a huge influx of corporate funds allowed under a Supreme Court decision last year.
Nearly every major union leader -- both public and private sector -- has united behind an ambitious $30 million plan to stop anti-labor measures in Wisconsin and at least 10 other states.
In Madison, hundreds of protesters gathered inside the Capitol on Sunday, as snow turned into freezing rain that made walking outside the building a challenge. The demonstrators banged on drums and danced in the Capitol Rotunda while they chanted, "This is what democracy looks like" and "Union busting!"
The crowd swelled throughout the day, but an estimate was not immediately available. Phil Neuenfeldt, president of the state AFL-CIO labor federation, told the crowd the protests would continue until the proposal was killed. Another large protest was expected Monday, the President's Day holiday, when many state workers are being furloughed to save money.
Mariah Clark, an emergency medical technician at the University of Wisconsin hospital and a volunteer firefighter, said she stands to lose $250 per month from her income with the benefits concessions. Standing on a bench holding a sign reading "EMT. Firefighter. Not the public enemy," she said the pay cut would hurt but that's not why she was protesting.
"I really believe this is about workers everywhere, not just public employees," said Clark, 29. "It's pathetic that in Wisconsin, one of the places where the labor movement started, that this would happen."
Walker told Fox News that he hoped the 14 absent Democratic senators would return to work early this week. But Democratic Sen. Jon Erpenbach said in a telephone interview Sunday that they weren't likely to come back until the governor was willing to compromise.
Erpenbach said he remained at a Chicago hotel and his colleagues were "scattered" out of state. They had a conference call Saturday night, and Erpenbach said they remained united in their effort to stall the bill by denying the quorum needed to vote on the legislationi.
"It's trying to slow this train down," he said. "It's making sure that obviously everybody in the state knows what we're dealing with here. It's an opportunity for the governor to calm down, take a step back, realize what he's asking for with this legislation and hopefully come to his senses."
Erpenbach said Democrats have reached out to Walker's administration but their phone calls have not been returned. He said it may take a coalition of moderate Republicans in the Senate to try to negotiate an end to the stalemate.
One of them, Republican Sen. Dale Schultz, has proposed suspending collective bargaining rights temporarily to get through the state's two-year budget, but then restoring them in 2013. That idea was endorsed Sunday by the Wisconsin State Journal, the state's second largest newspaper.
Erpenbach called Schultz brave for bucking Walker's administration with the proposal. Asked whether Democrats could accept Schultz's plan, Erpenbach said workers should not lose their rights since they have agreed to make concessions.
On Sunday, cornerback Charles Woodson, a member of the NFL Players Association, became the latest Green Bay Packer to back the public employees' cause. NFL owners and the players' union are locked in their own fight over a collective bargaining agreement. Along with Woodson, seven other current and former Packers have expressed support for the protesters.
