The myth of Wisconsin as a high tax state has been relentlessly pushed by a so-called "non-partisan" group that calls itself the Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance.  Now, a watchdog group has launched a website that reveals the built-in bias of the group behind the myth.  Read more here.

A new report shows the clear advantage that belonging to a union can mean for working men and women.  Unions substantially raise wages and benefits for their members in every state.  Read more here.

While there is never any shortage of sound and fury when electing presidents, senators and governors in November -- it’s the quiet spring elections where many AFSCME members can elect their own bosses. Even better, in many of these spring contests AFSCME members can actually become the boss.  Registered members can read more by clicking on above headline.

The youth movement is on in Wisconsin as all three AFSCME Councils are expanding their engagement in AFSCME’s Next Wave initiative.  Read more here.

Members of AFSCME Wisconsin's political action committees held a joint meeting in December to ask hard questions of the candidate they would go on to endorse to be Wisconsin's next governor.  Registered members may read more by clicking on the title above.

Circle March 3 on your calendar. It’s AFSCME Wisconsin’s All-Council Lobby Day.  That’s when AFSCME members flock to the State Capitol and tell policy makers -- face-to-face -- about issues that matter most.  Read more here.

Tough times have led to a lot of tough calls about public services at every level in Wisconsin. Not only has the state imposed furloughs and other cutbacks, many cash-strapped cities, counties and school districts have been solving their budget woes on the backs of public employees -- imposing furloughs, layoffs and wage cuts. In the best cases, communities are taking a hard look at all options and turning to worker concessions only as a last resort.  Read more here.

Times are no better in Wood County than they are in any other part of the state. The economy in this central Wisconsin County is taking the same hammering counties coast to coast are experiencing due to what is being called the Great Recession.  But while other local governments are forcing workers to take furloughs and other cutbacks, Wood County just completed a budget in which it closed a big gap without taking it out on the people who deliver vital services to county citizens.  Read more here.

For the second time in less than six months, 1,500 Dane County employees represented by AFSCME Council 40 have reached a negotiated agreement in an effort to help the county address a severe revenue shortfall due to the unprecedented national economic downturn.  Read more here.

Citizens in another Wisconsin County have voted to increase their own taxes to continue to support public ownership of their local nursing home.  Read more here.

A new study says privatizing the Milwaukee Water Works could cost water customers dearly. Opponents, including AFSCME Council 48, have long argued that selling the water works would mean higher costs and less accountability. The new study puts spells out the costs in detail. Read more here.

As Congress prepared to act on comprehensive health care reform, front-line workers made a stand to make sure the final product controls costs and expands access. AFSCME leaders and members stood up for real reform in two Wisconsin press conferences on Nov. 4.  Read more here.

Despite the way scapegoat-seeking politicians (like Scott Walker) try to blame public employees for budget woes, real numbers paint a very different picture. In October the U.S. Census Bureau issued data on state and local government employment and payrolls in 2008. The Wisconsin Budget Project has analyzed Wisconsin's rank in public sector employment. The numbers contradict politicians who deliberately spread the idea that WIsconsin has a large number of government employees and/or a large public sector payroll compared to other states. Fact is, only nine other states have a leaner public sector than Wisconsin. Read more here.

As Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker continues to drive the machinery of government that is his responsibility deeper into dysfunction -- despite the often-heroic efforts of front-line workers to save a sinking ship -- his ambitions clearly are set on destroying public services statewide.  Read more here.

AFSCME is committed to empowering members to become effective leaders in their workplaces and within their union.  To help members gain the tools necessary to be stronger leaders, the International union and AFSCME Councils in Wisconsin all offer many training opportunities.  The flagship of Council 40's training program is its annual week-long Leadership Training Institute.  You can read about it and other opportunities here.

Even in these tough times, delegates to this year’s Wisconsin PEOPLE Conference Convention had a lot to celebrate. But that celebration was tempered by a sobering look at the challenges ahead -- challenges the delegates committed to meeting head on.  Read more here.

Not every AFSCME member gets pictured on the cover of Time magazine.  Of course, not everyone finds himself leading a platoon of soldiers looking to disarm roadside bombs in Eastern Afganistan.  The exploits and heroism of Sgt. First Class Chet Millard as a member of Wisconsin National Guard's 951st Engineering Company brought him to the attention of the national magazine.  When not fighting on the front lines, brother Millard works on the front lines of public service in Wisconsin as a Correctional Officer at Jackson Correctional Institution where he is a Council 24 Local 219 member.  Read more here.

AFSCME members helped win an Oct. 6 referendum that saved the county-run nursing home in Green County. Voters there were asked to allow the county to exceed its property tax limit by 7.8%. That means a potential 13.3% increase to keep Pleasant View Nursing Home operating in county hands.  Read more here.

As state and local governments across the nation grapple with declining revenues caused by the national economic downturn, a familiar debate is playing out over and over. 
Read more at laborweb.afscme.org/sites/WI_C_11/index.cfm

How important is Wisconsin to AFSCME's PEOPLE program? Important enough that AFSCME International has stationed its new Midwest PEOPLE Coordinator in our state. Tammi Robinson already is becoming a familiar face at AFSCME events since her June arrival in Wisconsin. While she has many states to cover, working out of AFSCME's Madison headquarters will assure that AFSCME's birthplace gets plenty of attention.    Read more at laborweb.afscme.org/sites/WI_C_11/index.cfm