2 Years Later ... the Fire Still Burns February 14 Candlelight Vigil; MTI President Travels to Quebec

Madison Teachers, Inc. Solidarity Newsletter (PDF), via a kind Jeannie Bettner email:

On Thursday, February 14, MTI members are called to the Capitol (State Street entrance) commencing at 4:45 p.m., to commemorate the second anniversary of the uprising against Governor Walker's anti-public employee legislation which destroyed collective bargaining and has caused significant loss in wages.

The legislation (Act 10) has, in effect, frozen wages and caused most public employees to pay a greater share of health insurance premiums and 50% of pension deposits.

MTI members will be joined by Union members of Madison Firefighters, Madison Police, AFSCME, SCFL and TAA, as well as other supporters of public schools for a solidarity sing-a-long and candlelight vigil to commemorate the two-year anniversary of our historic effort to fight back. Wear MTI Red in support of your MTI colleagues and public education in Wisconsin.

MTI President Kerry Motoviloff Takes MTI Advocacy & Political Experience to Quebec
Kerry Motoviloff, MTI President and 22-year veteran teacher, describes herself as the proud great- granddaughter of union organizers for immigrant workers in Worchester, MA. She was a member of the MTI Board of Directors as Secretary in 2011, when MTI members led the uprising against Governor Walker's proposed anti-public employee legislation. She ran for MTI President later that spring.

Motoviloff spoke last week at the "Stand Up! Stay Strong!" Annual Conference of the Ontario Coordinating Committee, the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) which represents 55,000 education support workers in Toronto. Legislation that is similar to Wisconsin's Act 10 is also threatening many other countries in the world, as well as public workers in numerous states. It is the product of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). Quebec's proposed legislation would curtail the ability of Unions to participate in political action; control the Union's ability to organize within the labor movement; and otherwise have a negative impact on collective bargaining.

Posted by Jim Zellmer at February 7, 2013 2:22 AM
Subscribe to this site via RSS/Atom: Newsletter signup | Send us your ideas