Wisconsin Governor Refuses Unions' Offer
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker says he won’t negotiate over his plan to strip most collective bargaining rights from nearly every public employee. The Republican said at a news conference at the Capitol on Monday afternoon that he won’t accept any compromises. Union leaders for the state’s teachers, health care workers and other public employees have said they will give the governor the financial concessions he wants — amounting to a pay cut of 8 percent or more — but they will stand firm on what they call union-busting proposals. Walker rejects that idea… Walker has denied political motivations, saying his proposal is about cutting state and local spending for years to come. But in an interview with The Associated Press last week as protests raged inside the Capitol, he acknowledged his plan to allow workers to opt out of paying their dues could cripple unions.
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by NPR staff and wires, National Public Radio.
