IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Milwaukee County represented staff, with the exception of members of the three collective bargaining units identified above [TEAMCO, the machinists and the Assn. of Milwaukee County Attorneys], shall schedule four (4) additional floating furlough days to be taken by December 31, 2010….
This Order shall take effect upon the signing thereof and shall remain in full force and effect until further Order of the Milwaukee County Executive.
Dated at Milwaukee, Wisconsin, this 31st day of August, 2010.
So it looks like Walker does show up in the courthouse occasionallyto furlough folks.
The exemptions are the unions cited above, personnel in the courts, sheriff's office, DA's office, medical examiner's office, and those who work in direct patient care at the Behavioral Health Division.
Mind you, the county’s biggest union, AFSCME District Council 48, is already subject to 22 furlough days in 2010. Mind you, they’re unpaid. This new executive order brings that total up to 26 unpaid furlough days this year.
And why are they forced to take unpaid time off?
Because Walker and the County Board wrote wage and benefits concessions into the 2010 budget, concessions that had never been proposed to AFSCME during negotiations. That’s completely wrong. Contract negotiations are tied up right now, with the county stalling on moving forward.
Don’t forget that Walker is required by law to not run a deficit. Because this admission is part of his executive order:
WHEREAS, based on the mid-year analysis of the 2010 Budget, further budget reductions are required in order to prevent an operating deficit…
Now, hm… what happened mid-year? Well, the concessions hadn’t been agreed to. Then there’s the $700,000 that has to be spent on consultants who are doing inspections of county buildings. Where is that money going to come from? Why, the workers, of course! Happy Labor Day, folks!
UPDATED: I just spoke with Patty Yunk of AFSME District Council 48, who said the union hadn't been directly notified by Walker about the additional furlough days. Instead, employees received an email, which they forwarded on to the union. Walker offered no details about how much money this would save or how big the deficit is for 2010. But think about it: it's one unpaid day off per two-week pay period.
"This just shows Walker's fundamental lack of understanding of the impact of these furloughs on service delivery throughout the county," Yunk told me. "It's not saving money, either. In fact, the furloughs are generating more overtime costs in particular departments. Walker still needs to learn the lesson that he needs to work collaboratively with the board and the workers to get good results."
