Wisconsin Democrats again call for repeal of Walker-era labor laws

Wisconsin Democrats are once again introducing labor rights legislation, designed to repeal laws enacted by Republican former Gov. Scott Walker.

All of Wisconsin’s Democratic lawmakers have signed onto the legislative package, which was announced Thursday. But the proposals face a difficult road in the state’s GOP-controlled Legislature. Democratic Gov. Tony Evers included several similar proposals in his most-recent budget proposal, but Republican lawmakers removed them.

One of the newly unveiled bills would undo a 2015 law that made Wisconsin into what’s known as a right-to-work state. Under that law, private sector employees in Wisconsin can opt out of paying union dues even in unionized workplaces.

Republicans say right-to-work gives employees the freedom to choose. But Democrats have blasted the law for weakening organized labor, by cutting down on the size and financial power of union membership.

“Union workers like me call right-to-work ‘right to work for less,’” Colin Gillis, a Madison-based nurse who’s also involved with the Service Employees International Union, said during a news conference. “Right-to-work laws keep workers from getting the wages they deserve because they make it harder for us to speak as one.”

Another bill in the package would reestablish minimum pay requirements, known as prevailing wage, for public construction projects in Wisconsin. State Sen. Bob Wirch, D-Pleasant Prairie, said those changes would help Wisconsin retain construction workers. Right now, he said, many of those workers are instead choosing jobs in states like Illinois, where prevailing wage laws are still on the books.

“That means that skilled workers in places like my hometown, Kenosha, often head across the border to Illinois to earn fair pay, taking their skills and taxpayers with them,” Wirch said. “Reinstating prevailing wage is about keeping our workers and our money here, rebuilding the middle class and making sure a fair day’s work means a fair day’s pay.”

Additionally, the package would repeal a Walker-era ban on the use of project labor agreements by state and local governments. Those agreements allow governments to strike a deal with one or more labor unions before work starts on a given project. That includes setting pay and benefits that would apply to that specific project.

Finally, the package includes a bill that sponsors say is designed to give “more teeth” to state laws that prohibit misclassifying employees as independent contractors. That includes increasing “education and outreach” efforts about how employees should be classified, as well as beefing up enforcement resources to go after businesses that misclassify employees.

“Worker misclassification occurs when employers label employees as independent contractors to avoid legal responsibilities such as payroll taxes, minimum wage and overtime pay, workers’ compensation, unemployment insurance and health and safety protections,” a cosponsorship memo attached to the draft bill says. “This practice harms workers, law-abiding employers, and taxpayers.”

GOP legislative leaders did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday.

While the bills are unlikely to pass this session, Democrats could use them as campaign issues as they try to flip control of the state Legislature in next year’s elections.