Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett has only recently announced his intention to run for governor, but already there are those arguing he can't both run for governor and push forward on a plan for mayoral control of the Milwaukee Public School system. This criticism though, isn't originating from Republicans, but rather from Barrett's fellow Democrats.
The Milwuakee Area Labor Council argues (H/T Fox Politics):
I fear though that what we see these days from organized labor, especially in states like Wiscosin where it historically has been strong, is the last gasp of a decaying institution. Not an institution that changed so much as one that didn't realize times had changed. The exchange of our best working years for lifelong income and benefits has come and gone. As someone too young to have participated in that phase of our history there are times when I wish this were not so, but it is.
This example of labor opposition to a well-liked Democratic politician's plan to reform a troubled school district is just the latest example of labor moving beyond that vital role for which it was made and into protecting itself as an institution. It isn't the most egregious example, but a telling one nonetheless.
Regardless of who the next governor is, the labor movement in Wisconsin is going to have to decide if it wants to be forward-thinking and serve a leading role in transforming our economy to match the changing circumstances, or if it prefers to cling to what power it has left. The former could revitalize Milwaukee and Wisconsin, the latter will simply forestall the inevitable change and we will all suffer for it.
The Milwuakee Area Labor Council argues (H/T Fox Politics):
Members of his own party describe Tom Barrett’s decision Nov. 15 to run for governor while still struggling to rule the Milwaukee public schools as a calculated cynical gamble in opposition to the progressive forces he needs to turn out Democratic voters in Milwaukee.I have argued previously that workers ought to have the right to organize and that union representation can play an important role in helping workers negotiate for market wages. A single worker faces difficulty in judging the market value of his labor and can be in a weak bargaining position relative to a potential employer.
While agreeing that Barrett is their best and best known chance in the race, they still blame the public divisiveness that will result on both the mayor and the governor who decided not to run, Jim Doyle.
I fear though that what we see these days from organized labor, especially in states like Wiscosin where it historically has been strong, is the last gasp of a decaying institution. Not an institution that changed so much as one that didn't realize times had changed. The exchange of our best working years for lifelong income and benefits has come and gone. As someone too young to have participated in that phase of our history there are times when I wish this were not so, but it is.
This example of labor opposition to a well-liked Democratic politician's plan to reform a troubled school district is just the latest example of labor moving beyond that vital role for which it was made and into protecting itself as an institution. It isn't the most egregious example, but a telling one nonetheless.
Regardless of who the next governor is, the labor movement in Wisconsin is going to have to decide if it wants to be forward-thinking and serve a leading role in transforming our economy to match the changing circumstances, or if it prefers to cling to what power it has left. The former could revitalize Milwaukee and Wisconsin, the latter will simply forestall the inevitable change and we will all suffer for it.
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