MADISON, Wis., (Reuters) – Republi-cans in the Wisconsin state Senate approved Governor Scott Walker’s plan to curb the rights of public-sector unions yesterday, stripping out the parts that required the presence of their 14 absent Democratic colleagues.
In an 18-to-1 vote, the Senate approv-ed the restrictions on collective bargaining by public employees that Walker has insisted are needed to help the state’s cash-strapped municipalities deal with a projected $1.27 billion drop in state aid over the next two years.
The measure will now go to the Republican-controlled state Assembly, which is expected to vote on the matter today.
State Senate Democrats fled to Illinois last month to stall action on the Republican governor’s proposal.
Walker applauded the Senate move, which came despite growing signs the majority of Wisconsin residents do not back the measure.
His proposal has sparked a major confrontation with organized labor and the largest protests in Wisconsin since the Vietnam War. It reverses long-standing policy in Wisconsin, which was among the first states to give public employees union rights.
“The Senate Democrats have had three weeks to debate this bill and were offered repeated opportunities to come home, which they refused,” Walker said in a statement.
Democrats blasted the move.
“It appears Republicans are violating their own word and ramming through the most divisive piece of legislation in modern history without Democrats present,” said Graeme Zielinski, a spokesman for the Democrats.
