Public employees tell lawmakers, ‘No more Band-Aids’

By tsuperadmin | March 16, 2005

More than 1,000 members of AFSCME rallied at the state Capitol Wednesday and met with legislators to send the message: “No more Band-Aids!”

The occasion was the annual “Day on the Hill” for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, the largest public employee union in Minnesota, representing more than 52,000 workers.

Union members are concerned about adequate funding for roads, schools and health care and want a state budget that reflects the priorities of the vast majority of Minnesotans. They say Governor Tim Pawlenty’s pledge not to raise taxes isn’t realistic and has simply led to higher property taxes and various fees across the state.

Dozens of AFSCME members suggested their solution to the state’s budget problems by carrying signs that read, “Tax the rich.” Others carried signs calling for living wages and affordable health care for all.

Minnesota has a $700 million deficit, not including inflation. Pawlenty’s almost $30 billion budget depends on revenue from a state-licensed casino and cuts in the state-run MinnesotaCare health plan.

A statue of William Colvill, leader of the Minnesota Volunteers in the Civil War, towers over Patti McPhail of Esko and K.J. Makoutz of Duluth as they rally at the Capitol.

“No more Band-Aids for transportation,” said Joe Warmuth of Nashwauk, president of Itasca County Road and Bridge Local 1452. “Get real funding involved to fund real roads for real people!”

Like transportation, health care and schools are under-funded in the governor’s budget, other AFSCME members said.

Deb Tauer, an LPN and president of Local 105, said, “Let’s put the money where the need is ? to take care of patients.”

“Our children are being affected by these cuts,” said Rhonda Petschen, president of Local 844 which represents clerical and technical workers in the St. Paul school district. “We are quickly approaching a crisis stage within the educational system.”

AFSCME members, many of them wearing the union’s trademark green jacket, fanned out across the Capitol to meet with their senators and representatives. AFSCME Council 5 Executive Director Eliot Seide led a delegation that attempted to meet with Pawlenty, but were turned away at the door to the governor’s office.

Patti McPhail, a member of Local 1092 and an LPN from Esko, said she was excited to be attending her first Day on the Hill. She planned to tell lawmakers to protect public services, such as Liberalis, the chemical dependency treatment program where she works. The state has many needs, she said, which can be met by raising taxes in a fair way.

“If any of us is fortunate enough to be wealthy, we can pay more to help others,” she said.