Walker proposed to make State employees contribute to their own pension plan. The State will continue to make its contribution, but will no longer 'double up' and pay the employee-contribution portion, too.
Neumann issued a statement which Belling read over the air. (It's in his podcast, last half-hour of today's show, beginning about 2 minutes in.) This is the gist of it, but not a transcription:
'Everything must be on the table.....everyone should sacrifice. As Governor, I will handle union negotiations just as I do with my small business....Scott Walker is addressing one piece of a very large puzzle....I advocate [a comprehensive change] which does not cherry-pick budget line items...
'My plan calls for all State agencies to make a 1% cut in spending from the current budget amount.'
Umnnhhh. I smell mush.
Rather than making tough calls, Neumann's calling for the old "across-the-board reductions" card, which usually results in games, distortions, and meaningless tweaking.
Walker shows his management savvy: he knows where the bodies are buried, and he's going there. Neumann kinda sorta hopes that he'll find a bone.
Fail.
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4 comments:
Walker knows where the bodies are buried but Neumann's response reflects the reality that Walker can't unilaterally force the employees to pick up what is denominated as their share of the contributions. This was bargained away by the state in labor negotiations many years ago.
It's a change worth making, but it will have to be bargained. Neumann understands this, but Walker doesn't, apparently, or he just wanted to make a cheap political point.
Walker can't force it, but he can just eliminate them.
Wait and see how this works out.
Hold on tight.
1%? 1% is crap. The budget needs at least a 10% cut and it needs to be targeted at stuff the state shouldn't be doing.
Neumann is a tool.
1% is chump change.
We cut 5% or so annually and did a much larger cut last year. Hell, I had to buy my own pens for the office.
They should be able to cut the 10% growth they've had over the past couple years without even breaking a sweat.
Walker is pointing out where the red meat is. Neumann is posing.
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