3 key takeaways from the May 18 union rally in Springfield
AFSCME members lobbied for $3 billion in additional pay and benefits, showing their lack of concern for Illinois’ overburdened taxpayers.
Thousands of union members, led by members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, descended on the Illinois Capitol on May 18, protesting Gov. Bruce Rauner’s attempts to bring Illinois’ budget in line with what taxpayers can afford. Angry speakers and protesters decried the state’s lack of a budget. But the protesters ignored several key facts, choosing to place blame on Rauner for state Democrats’ fiscal failings. Protesters also refused to acknowledge – and did not appear to care – that AFSCME’s $3 billion contract demands would further burden the state’s taxpayers.
- Protesters have completely misplaced the blame for Illinois’ financial crisis
Nearly every speaker railed against Rauner’s leadership in Illinois, blaming him for the state’s financial woes. Michael Carrigan, president of the Illinois AFL-CIO, went so far as to claim that Illinois’ financial devastation is all “due to one man.” But clearly, Illinois’ financial woes predate Rauner’s 16 months in office. And Carrigan and the other speakers ignored the elephant in the room: Illinois House of Representatives Speaker Michael Madigan’s 45-year tenure as an Illinois lawmaker, and the Democrat-controlled General Assembly’s failure to take any steps toward economic stability for the state. A state doesn’t rack up $111 billion in pension debt and $7 billion in unpaid bills overnight.
- Government unions are out of touch with how their demands harm state taxpayers
In addition, the union leadership failed to acknowledge that this union battle is not truly against Rauner; it’s against the state’s taxpayers. Speakers demanded a “fair contract” for AFSCME and criticized the governor for trying to “slash” the state’s budget. But of course, AFSCME’s demands come at a cost – to the state’s taxpayers. No one at the rally admitted that they want the state to raise taxes, but that is exactly what their demands would require.
For example, in its negotiations with the state, AFSCME is demanding contract provisions that would cost the state an additional $3 billion in salary increases and benefits. AFSCME is seeking pay raises between 11.5 and 29 percent, platinum-level health insurance at bronze-level prices, and overtime for any time worked over 37.5 hours a week.
And while Illinois state workers are the highest-paid state workers in the nation when adjusted for cost of living – with median AFSCME salaries increasing more than 40 percent from 2005 to 2014 – median private-sector earnings in Illinois remained virtually stagnant during the same time period.
To put it simply, AFSCME’s idea of a “fair contract” is taking more money from taxpayers whose own salaries have flatlined.
- Government unions protested during work hours
Finally, union leaders and protesters ignored the key fact that thousands of state workers rallied at the Capitol and were not working at their taxpayer-funded jobs May 18. Union claims from the podium estimated that at least 8,000 protesters participated in the rally. But if the state can continue to function without all those people going to work, should Illinois taxpayers really be expected to pay them $3 billion in additional compensation?