Six anti-labor bills are winding their way through the Arizona Legislature– four target unions, making collective bargaining illegal and outlawing union dues deductions from paychecks; one would strip civil service protections from 29,000 state employees, allowing the governor to fire civil servants and hire her pals; and the last is a ballot initiative which would lower the minimum wage for tip workers (because $4.65/hour is such an extravagant salary) and lower the minimum wage for people 20 years old and under.
The union bills were dubbed “worse than Wisconsin”, but then the governor and legislature add the other two bills on top. When those guys decide to decimate the middle class, they don’t mess around.
What’s a person to do? Call and/or e-mail your legislators… NOW. Here’s the Senate membership list. Here’s the House membership list. In addition to calling your own legislators, I also urge anyone who lives in the new CD2 (Gabby Giffords’ reformulated district) to call Senator Frank Antenori, since he wants to be our new Congressman. (Shudder.)
In addition to calling, union leaders are organizing a day of action on March 1 at the capitol and have an online petition, but the anti-labor laws will affect all of us. We– the 99%– are in this together. Pick up that phone.
For background on the anti-union and anti-civil service bills, check out this story:
Arizona’s New Labor Bills Called ‘Worse Than Wisconsin’
For more coverage of the union forum (video above) and the anti-minimum wage bill, check out this story:
Arizona Workers Mobilize As Legislators Debate Anti-Labor Laws