WEAC Pushes Court to Strike Act 10
There is another call to fast track what could likely be the end of Act-10.
Wisconsin’s largest teachers’ union, the Wisconsin Education Association Council, on Friday asked the liberal-majority court to take up the Dane County case that challenges Act-10's constitutionality.
“This case affects hundreds of thousands of public service workers across the state who are currently operating under an unconstitutional system,” Jeff Mandell, President and General Counsel of the liberal law firm, Law Forward, said in a statement. “The people of Wisconsin deserve clarity, and we believe this issue warrants the immediate attention of the state’s highest court.”
WEAC has challenged Act-10 in the past, and has long hated the law because it changed how teachers and other public sector workers can negotiate their contracts.
Act-10, which was signed by former Gov. Scott Walker, limited contract negotiations to salaries alone, and tied any raises to the rate of inflation.
Dozens of studies over the years have shown that Act 10 saved Wisconsin taxpayers’ billions of dollars. The last guess was that Act-10 has saved nearly $14 billion since it was signed into law.
WEAC is one of several unions who are driving the latest challenge.
A Dane County judge ruled in their favor back in December when he struck down Act-10 as unconstitutional.
WEAC asked the supreme court on Friday to take-up the challenge to that ruling immediately.
“In filing the newest motion, the plaintiffs – representing educators, conservation wardens, sanitation workers, nurses and other public service workers – expressed the urgency of a final decision. From the well-documented staffing crisis in schools and correctional institutions to the rampant cases of arbitrary treatment of workers, Wisconsin’s excellent public services are in need of immediate protection, plaintiffs said," WEAC said in a statement. "The petition filed [Friday] argues that Act 10’s collective bargaining provisions are of immense statewide significance' and must be resolved promptly to avoid ongoing harm to public employees and their employers."
Lawyers for the Republican-led state legislature say nothing has changed with Act-10 since it was upheld in both state and federal courts after it was passed.
The only thing that has changed, the legislature’s legal team has said, is that Wisconsin’s supreme court now has a liberal-majority.
The high court has not said if, or when, it will make a decision about whether to hear the Act-10 case.
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