Federal judge backs Scott Walker in Act 10 ruling, dismisses lawsuit
Madison — A federal judge threw out a lawsuit Wednesday challenging Wisconsin's tight restrictions on collective bargaining for public employees.
The decision by U.S. District Judge William Conley is the latest loss for unions and victory for Gov. Scott Walker, who proposed and approved the measure soon after he took office in 2011.
The law stipulated that government employee unions could negotiate over wages but nothing else, and that any pay increases could be no higher than the rate of inflation. The law also dictated that unions would not be recognized by the state unless 51% of all potential members — not just those voting — supported the union in annual elections.
Two unions representing local employees throughout Dane County sued in federal court in Madison contending the law violated their rights to freedom of association and equal protection under the law.
But Conley ruled the law does not infringe on employees' First Amendment rights.
"Under Act 10, general employees remain free to associate and represented employees and their unions remain free to speak; municipal employers are simply not allowed to listen," Conley wrote.
The unions noted that under Act 10 they could ask for no more than inflationary raises, while individual employees could ask for increases of any size and argued such differential treatment is unconstitutional. But Conley found such differential treatment was acceptable.
http://www.jsonline.com/news/statepolitics/federal-judge-backs-scott-walker-in-act-10-ruling-dismisses-lawsuit-b9996259z1-223349491.html
Make no mistake..they're coming for us
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