State employee unions won’t surrender 2-percent raises

Governor Doyle and the leaders of two of Wisconsin’s key state employees unions are in a stare-down.

Doyle wants the unions to forego their scheduled two-percent pay raises, and accept the same furloughs as non-union state employees are going to have to take over the course of the next two-year budget.If they don’t, the governor says he’ll cut 400 union jobs.

But the unions say they’re not giving up their raises until the state stops giving additional work to private, outside contractors.

Bryan Kennedy, president of one of those unions, A-F-T Wisconsin, talked to WPR’s Terry Bell about the situation…