Victory in Wisconsin Means the Union Era is Over

Yesterday, Wisconsin lawmakers dealt a fatal blow to unions by stripping them of nearly all of their collective bargaining rights. The vote ended a stalemate that had continued for weeks after Democrats undermined the democratic process by fleeing the state and preventing a quorum in the Senate. Governor Scott Walker gave them every chance to return and debate the bill, but their refusal to do so ultimately forced his hand. Republicans thus removed all spending measures from Walker's collective bargaining legislation and voted to approve it without Democrats present. It then went to the Assembly, where it passed by a vote of 53-42.

As you might guess, union members are up in arms over the fact that the legislation passed. They've called the process underhanded, illegal, and "grossly undemocratic." Governor Walker has been labeled a liar, and lawsuits have been filed claiming that the open meetings law was violated. Moreover, union leaders have called it an assault on the rights of the people of Wisconsin.

I find it all quite laughable. "Grossly undemocratic?" What can be more undemocratic than a group of lawmakers fleeing their state, hiding out in hotels, and thus preventing the work of the legislature from getting done? Were they not elected to do a job? Do they not get paid for doing that job? What would happen if someone in another profession decided to flee their state in order to neglect their duties? Would that job be waiting for them when they return if they were gone for weeks at a time?

If the shoe was on the other foot and Republican lawmakers fled a state legislature in order to prevent a liberal agenda from moving forward, then the response in the media would be quite different. They'd be depicted as villains and labeled un-American. But we certainly haven't seen that with regard to the Democratic state senators from Wisconsin.

I love the game that the unions have played with their language, claiming that the rights of the "people" are being violated. Who are these "people?" They certainly can't be talking about the majority of voters, you know, the ones who elected Walker and Republican legislators to move this agenda forward. Unions want us to think that an assault on the rights of public employees is an assault on the rights of every American. But they're losing that battle quite decisively.

Polls conducted by liberal institutions like the New York Times have supposedly shown that the public sides with unions in this on-going battle. But further scrutiny has revealed the unquestionable bias inherent in these polls, as a significant percentage of participants either lived in union households or had family members who belonged to a public employee union.

The polls conducted by Quinnipiac and Rutgers-Eagleton here in New Jersey have overwhelmingly shown that the majority of voters do not support the unions. The average citizen is not sympathetic to union workers and is not buying into their alarmist tactics. Whether it's the police officers and firefighters claiming that public safety will be compromised, teachers warning us that the quality of our children's education will be severely damaged, or other unions crying about how the increase in pension and benefits contributions will have a devastating impact on their members' ability to feed their families, very few want to hear it.

With the anti-union legislation in Wisconsin being passed, how will it impact public opinion? Will more voters now be sympathetic to the unions? Is Walker going to be considered a hero or a villain? Will other states follow suit?

Idaho recently became the first state to phase out teacher tenure, and Ohio is on the verge of unveiling what Governor Kasich is calling a model package of reforms for dealing with the state's budget deficit. Included in this package will be several anti-union measures, and I see Ohio as being the next big battleground state in the war against lavish spending on benefits for public workers.

At home here in New Jersey, Governor Christie is gearing up for his own conflict, and has already more or less said that there is nothing for the unions to discuss with him. He's prepared to introduce legislation to force state employees to pay 30 percent of their health care costs, arguing that unions took the same routes when seeking increases in the past. Of course, the CWA and NJEA have rejected his claims as false, and the battle goes on.

I predict that Governor Walker will come out smelling like a rose when all is said and done. Wisconsin voters are smart enough to know that it was the Democratic lawmakers' breach of justice that forced things to get done the way they were done. Also, once they see how these measures cut the budget deficit and put the state on the road back to fiscal health, they'll forget all about this hullabaloo.

I feel very strongly that history is unfolding before our very eyes. We're witnessing a turning point in our society, one in which the pendulum is beginning to swing away from the power that unions have wielded for the past 50 years.

Given the state of the global economy, as well as the long period of recovery that lies ahead, I don't see things ever returning to the way they once were for public employees. Our lives have changed, not temporarily, but permanently. Such is the effect of the worst financial crisis since The Great Depression.

As with anything else in life, you always have a choice. If public workers don't like the changes coming down the pike, they can always quit their jobs and go into another line of work. In life, there are no guarantees, and those who say that they entered the public sector expecting great benefits and job security for life entered for the wrong reasons. You can't go into anything headlong expecting that things will always be the same, whether it's accepting a job offer, moving into a new neighborhood, or getting married. Life changes, and you have to change along with it.

As far as I'm concerned, public employees need to do their part to help us solve the financial crisis, whether it's accepting pay cuts, increasing contributions to healthcare premiums and pensions, surrendering their collective bargaining rights, or all of the above. If they truly entered their line of work to be a public servant, then let them show their commitment and dedication by making the sacrifices public servants are expected to make.