February 24, 2015 4:00pm by David Farrar

Has Walker won Wisconsin?

Walker has pointed to the unions’ membership troubles as a victory – presenting himself as a conservative warrior unafraid of taking on big battles against liberal interests.

Walker administration budget analysts said forcing public employees to contribute more to retirement plans and health insurance helped local governments save US$3 billion (NZ$3.9b). He also credited the 2011 law with saving homeowners money on property taxes while giving school districts the ability to make reforms that boosted third-grade reading levels and high school graduation rates.

“We took the power away from the big government special interests and put it firmly in the hands of the hard-working taxpayers,” Walker told Iowa Republicans recently. “That is what we need more of in this great country. The liberals don’t like that.”

Union officials declined to release precise membership data but confirmed in interviews that enrolment is dramatically lower since the new law was signed in 2011.

The state branch of the National Education Association, once 100,000 strong, has seen its membership drop by a third. The American Federation of Teachers, which organised in the college system, saw a 50 per cent decline. The 70,000-person membership in the state employees union has fallen by 70 per cent.

That’s a huge decline in just a few years. The reforms pushed by Walker were:

public servants to pay 50% of the cost of their pension payments, up from 0%
public servants to pay 12% of their health insurance premiums, up from 6%
A referendum needed to approve any public sector wage settlement greater than CPI
Unions must collect their own fees, rather than employers
Non union members no longer required to pay fees to unions

Walker survived both a recall election and the Wisconsin State Supreme Court upheld his laws as constitutional.