Wis. Supreme Court Ruling Upholds Union Law Pushed By Gov. Walker
The decision overturns a lower court judge who had halted implementation of the law, which requires public employees to pick up a greater share of their health care costs and pensions.
The Wall Street Journal: Wisconsin Union Law To Take Effect
The Wisconsin Supreme Court cleared the way Tuesday for the state's contentious collective-bargaining law to take effect, ruling 4-3 that a lower-court judge who put the measure on hold improperly interfered with the legislature. The decision limits Wisconsin's public employees to bargaining over their wages. Raises will be limited to the inflation rate unless voters approve larger increases. The law also requires public employees to contribute 5.8% of their salaries to their pensions and pay at least 12.6% of their health-care premiums (Merrick, 6/15).
The Associated Press: Court Allows Wisconsin's Union Law To Take Effect
The Wisconsin Supreme Court handed Republican Gov. Scott Walker a major victory on Tuesday, ruling that a polarizing union law could take effect that strips most public employees of their collective bargaining rights. The law, which also requires public employees to pay more for their health care and pensions, sparked weeks of protests when Walker introduced it in February (Bauer, 6/14).
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Supreme Court Reinstates Collective Bargaining Law
Acting with unusual speed, the state Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered the reinstatement of Gov. Scott Walker's controversial plan to end most collective bargaining for tens of thousands of public workers. The court found that a committee of lawmakers was not subject to the state's open meetings law, and so did not violate that law when it hastily approved the collective bargaining measure in March and made it possible for the Senate to take it up. In doing so, the Supreme Court overruled a Dane County judge who had halted the legislation, ending one challenge to the law even as new challenges are likely to emerge (Marley and Walker 6/14).
