In response to a 2004 strike by UW-Madison teaching assistants which he deemed illegal, Senator Tom Reynolds, R-West Allis, introduced a bill Wednesday to eliminate the ability of the Teaching Assistants' Association to collectively bargain.
\The teacher's assistants went on an illegal strike,"" Reynolds said. ""I was waiting on the Governor's office to uphold the law and provide the discipline or sanctions they saw was the proper response to illegally violating state statutes.""
When no action was taken, Reynolds decided to take matters into his own hands.
""I had pledged that as a legislator I would do what I thought was the proper thing to do, and that would be to eliminate the ability to be a collective bargaining unit,"" Reynolds said.
As the author of the bill granting the TAA the right to collectively bargain in 1985, state Sen.Fred Risser, D-Madison, does not see support for Reynolds' bill.
""I doubt that Sen. Reynolds' bill will pass, and if it did, I would certainly hope the Governor would veto it. There's no way the veto would be overridden,"" Risser said. ""I think the bill is ill-advised and I would certainly oppose it.""
Risser said he does not feel this bill will pass because TAs should maintain their right to bargain.
""The TAs are bargaining with the state and they are given that right by statute. For Sen. Reynolds to attempt to decertify them just because he does not like what they are doing is a rather vindictive approach,"" he added.
According to UW-Madison TA Melissa Thompson, collective bargaining is essential for TAs at the university.
""Collective bargaining rights have been really important, and we are using them to move us forward on this contract, and the state is ready to move forward as well,"" Thompson said.
The elimination of collective bargaining would not only affect TAs. but the entire student body at UW-Madison.
""A bill like this wouldn't just end up affecting the TAA in our negotiations, but it would end up having an effect on all of the students whose classes we teach and the students who benefit from the programs that are run primarily by TAs,"" Thompson said.
""Basically, the better packages you can offer a grad student, the better quality TAs you are going to have.\
