Local Firefighters Get a Warm Reception at Budget Protest

When firefighters from Caledonia, Janesville, Kenosha, and South Shore fire departments got off the bus in Madison this afternoon, a crowd of thousands cheered.

Caledonia firefighters, Walter Leininger, Dennis Rybarik and Steve Ramlow, boarded a bus this morning to join a rally in Madison to protest Gov. Scott Walker’s budget repair bill. They carried signs that said, “Firefighters for Labor.”

In total, over 15,000 people attended the rally, which was held from noon to 1 p.m. Tuesday at the state capitol. Union members from local teacher’s and health care worker’s unions had gathered to protest Walker’s budget repair bill.

Leininger said the afternoon was quite humbling because a number of people gave them high fives and handshakes when they stepped off the bus. Over 120 firefighters from different unions across the state showed up.

“The group is very motivated, and they were very pleased to see us, even though we are excluded…we were marching in solidarity,” Leininger said.

If passed, Walker’s budget repair bill would prohibit employers from collecting union dues and members of collective bargaining units would not be required to pay dues. Local law enforcement and fire employees, state troopers and inspectors would be exempt from the changes. But they joined the protest anyway because they feel this is the first step towards busting Wisconsin’s unions.

"The bill will not allow state an municipal worker to bargain on anything else but wages," Leininger said. "(The) fear is that this is Walkers first step in dividing unions and creating a right to work state, which would prohibit us from collecting fair share dues from non-unin members that work in a union shop and benefit from the contracts."

Leininger said, union officials were fired up at the protest.

“One of the AFSCME union presidents talked about how Walker was taking 50 years of fair, peaceful bargaining and throwing that away, even when 70 years ago AFSCME formed here.”

In addition to the protest held today, college students marched in the streets yesterday, and another protest is scheduled tomorrow.

“If the bill passes, one speaker said ‘We’ll have four more years of rallying to get Walker out of office,’” Leininger said.