pinko

It is quite likely I know much more than you do about defined benefit pension plans. By the way in Canada we don't have what has been referred to as 401k accounts. It appears you are attempting to compare defined benefit and defined contribution plans.

Enlighten us, hotshot.

What is required are more tax brackets delineating the higher income earners.

The early 70's had brought political instability on the international scene and with the formation of OPEC in the early 60's (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Nations) the scene was set. OPEC began to raise the price of crude oil which in conjunction with American hyper spending over the previous 10 years began to drive up inflation rates. Unions responded to arising prices by striking and demanding equivalent wage increases while businesses passed on the increase in production costs to the consumer in the form of higher prices for products. Due to the impact of increasing inflation in most other developed countries, Canada found it difficult to control affairs in the domestic economy. The Liberals won the election but by 1975 the inflation rate which had been 10.7% in 1974 had climbed to 10.9% and showed no sign of abating. Trudeau was forced to rethink all of the options and when he introduced the Anti-Inflation Act in Parliament it contained wage and price controls for various segments of the economy. The legislation was only one part of a program that also imposed limits on Federal government expenditures, tighter monetary policies and government restrictions on fiscal policy. Wage increase were to be restricted to 10% during the first year of the program, and then 8% and 6% during the following two years. These restrictions applied to all Federal government employees and employees of companies that employed over 500 works. The implementation of these policies was overseen by the anti-inflation board which had the ability to recommend the reduction in prices of consumer goods, wage rollbacks and rebates to customers of various services. http://www.canadahistory.com/sections/eras/trudeau/wage_&_price_controls.htm

You seem to have some knowledge of the Trudeau era. A more relevant comparison would be Trudeau's imposition of wage and price controls. If I recall that particular program set out defined increases over a three year period. Of course collective bargaining rights remained intact during that time frame. Here is a link http://archives.cbc.ca/economy_business/labour_unions/clips/8001/

You are no more the employer than I am when it comes to governemnt.

Yes and unless and until Gov. Walker backs down from his effort to destroy unions in his state little, if any progress will be made. His legislative initaitive is what is hampering the collective bargaining process.

I don't think so. As I mentioned previously there are a multitude of labour unions and employers in Wisconsin each with specific terms and conditions. If you read the emails accompanying the posted artile you should recognize this.

The problem with your position is that it neglects to recognize the fact that the decisions are being made by the Governor of Wisconsin with the backing of his Republican majority. If your scenario is to make any sense there needs to be meaningful negotiations between the Republicans and Democrats. I would expect if such negotiations took place one of the conditions on the Democrat side would see the Republicans dropping its proposal to strip bargaining rights from public sector employees. FYI management and labour are many employers and a variety of unions. Apart from lobbying efforts they are excluded from the process I have described above.

Tuesday, March 08, 2011 1:44 PM Walker's office releases e-mail exchange with Dems Gov. Scott Walker's office today released e-mails detailing talks with Senate Dems over his budget repair bill, including proposed tweaks to provisions on collective bargaining, union recertification votes and limits on public employee salary increases. The e-mails include an LFB memo, dated Feb. 28, outlining a proposal that would have removed the provision of the repair bill tying wage increases to the consumer price index and a provision requiring a referendum to exceed the CPI for wage increases. The proposal would extend the term for collective bargaining agreements to two to three years, as opposed to the limit of one-year terms called for in the budget repair bill. The proposal allows for collective bargaining of pension contributions three years after the effective date of the bill, but the contribution from employees could not be bargained to less than 4 percent. The proposal would also loosen the requirements for union certification. Walker's bill proposed a certification vote annually, but the proposal moved that to every three years. The proposal would also push back the requirement for the initial vote on certification to 18 months after the effective date of the bill. Walker's proposal of required unions take certification votes in April, 2011. The proposal does not specify any changes to union dues provisions in Walker's bill or other collective bargaining provisions. The proposal also requires the Joint Finance Committee to hold a public hearing on changes to Medical Assistance programs authorized by the Department of Health Services. A second proposal, dated March 3, retains collective bargaining for wages, length-of-service credit, and continuing education credit, plus a host of other economic issues like sick time, and overtime and vacations. The proposal also eliminates the CPI cap and referendum provisions. The second proposal would set a term for collective bargaining agreements of one to two years. The initial certification vote would take place a year after the effective date of the bill, and would be required thereafter every three years. The second proposal also requires that the governor appoint a 10-member commission to make recommendations to the Joint Finance Committee identifying items related to workplace conditions and safety that would be allowable subjects of collective bargaining. The second proposal would also delete the provision in the repair bill that repeals the collective bargaining rights for UW Hospital and Clinic Authority employees. The outline of a third proposal, dated Sunday, lists the repeal of collective bargaining rights for UW Hospital and Clinic Authority employees as "subject for further discussion" and includes many of the details from the previous proposals. The e-mails also include counter-proposals from the governor's office. See the emails here. Walker spokesman Cullen Werwie said the e-mail communications were released due to numerous requests and are in addition to in-person meetings between key members of the guv's staff and Senate Democrats. Sen. Bob Jauch's personal email address is redacted in the documents. http://budget.wispolitics.com/2011/03/walkers-office-releases-email-exchange.html

Which two sides are you referring to?

Pension legislation requires employers to properly fund pension plans. The burden for this problem rests with employers failing to meet these obligations.

I notice you use the term "blame". Why should a union be blamed for expecting an employer to fulfill it's obligations?

Except Michigan isn't bankrupt. The Republican majority could tax those that provided the funds provided to them by the financial elite. This is a contrived crisis.

I am not familiar with Michigan State pension regulations. In Canada pensions, whether public or private, are treated similarly with respect to deductions and then payment. By this I mean when I pay into a pension plan I am allowed to treat this as a tax deduction which in turn normally reduces my nominal tax rate. Then when the time comes to collect or draw on my pension I pay income tax on the amount withdrawn. The point I was trying to make about municipal government is that it is a creature of provincial legislation.

For your information a public sector pension is taxed once a person draws on such a pension. By elected local official I take it you are referring to municipal government. I live in the City of Winnipeg and we have civic elections every four years. At such intervals we (the voters) elect a mayor and 15 other city councillors whose responsibilities are outlined in The City of Winnipeg Charter Act, a piece of legislation created by the provincial government. Between elections the Council makes budgetary decisions and establishes spending and taxing priorities. While they are certainly accountable to the electorate they are also acting on behalf of the City of Winnipeg.

Someone should start apologizing for Sarah Palin.....the quiter

But what everyone knows is wrong. The day after the Obama-Bush event, The Times published an article about the growing use of software to perform legal research. Computers, it turns out, can quickly analyze millions of documents, cheaply performing a task that used to require armies of lawyers and paralegals. In this case, then, technological progress is actually reducing the demand for highly educated workers. And legal research isn’t an isolated example. As the article points out, software has also been replacing engineers in such tasks as chip design. More broadly, the idea that modern technology eliminates only menial jobs, that well-educated workers are clear winners, may dominate popular discussion, but it’s actually decades out of date. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/07/opinion/07krugman.html?_r=1&src=me&ref=homepage

Are you a proponent or opponent of planned obsolescence?

Maybe but it makes a good conversation piece.

Democratic Party Of Wisconsin Ethics Complaint Against Gov. Scott Walker ® http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/documents/2011/03/democratic-party-of-wisconsin-ethics-complaint-against-gov-scott-walker-r.php?page=1

I quite enjoy eating falafels.

We live in a modest home on a modest income in a modest neighbourhood. We don't have a mortgage although I have a line of credit for the car I purchased last year.

http://www.suzeorman.com/