Gov. Doyle Saved Mercury Marine; Scott Walker Asleep at the Wheel

Six years ago, Gov. Jim Doyle, the city and county of Fond du Lac and (IAM) Local 1947 pulled out all stops to save 1,000s of jobs in the Fox River Valley at Mercury Marine and the region, (Mal Contends) (Mal Contends).

As for Gov. Scott Walker and Oscar Mayer? Walker is asleep at the wheel.

And Walker is very testy about Wisconsin citizens asking any questions, (Democurmudgeon).

Walker denied there was anything he or his 'jobs' agency could have done, saying "... it has nothing to do with Wisconsin and has everything to do with a corporate decision ... ," (WISC-TV).

Bad message, shows Walker is out-of-touch and helps only his cronies and donors.

Walker switched tracks on Friday and wrote a letter to Democratic legislators, saying Republicans and Democrats "need to work together to help the workers and families being hurt ... ."

Following Walker's epic failure of his 'jobs' agency, (Ivey, The Capital Times) the only question is if Wisconsin can survive the rest of Walker's tenure.

Typical Scott Walker: Deny, qualify, reverse and no accountability from Governor Jobs Failure.

National veterans group hosts worker solidarity march Saturday: Today

March 12, 2011 - Madison, Wisconsin

Judith Davidoff has a piece noting veterans joining Wisconsin working families against Scott Walker.

Veterans are used to abuse from the U.S. Dept of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Benefit Administration, and rightwing thinktanks.

Veterans' help is our help. See National veterans group hosts worker solidarity march Saturday at the Cap Times.

Oklahoma Merc Plant to Close, Jobs to Fondy

Rollercoaster ride in Fond du Lac.

Aggressive Wisconsin pols looking out for their own? Corporate duplicity?

Whatever the machinations in the minds of the decision-makers at Brunswick and Mercury Marine, the Fox Valley and (IAM) Local 1947 are relieved; not so in Oklahoma.

The latest:

From the AP in the Chicago Tribune:

STILLWATER, Okla. - After Wisconsin workers agreed to concessions, Mercury Marine said it will move work there from Oklahoma within two years, putting 380 employees in Stillwater out of work.

The boat engine maker pitted its manufacturing plants in Stillwater and Fond du Lac, Wis., against each other, saying it would consolidate the plants but hadn't decided where.

When a union representing workers at the Wisconsin plant agreed last week to wage and benefit concessions, the company announced that plant would remain open.

On Friday, Mercury Marine said it would take 18 to 24 months to complete the Stillwater layoff.

'Eventually we'll close the Stillwater facility,' Mercury Marine spokesman Steve Fleming said.

Company President Mark Schwabero said the consolidation needed after major declines in the recreational boating industry. 'As we've stated throughout this important process, comprehensive changes to wages, benefits and operational flexibility are necessary for Mercury to effectively compete in a smaller and fundamentally changed marketplace,' he said.

State Rep. Cory Williams, D-Stillwater, worked with state officials to put together a tax-incentive package to entice Mercury Marine to stay. 'This went down to a corporation trying to get concessions out of a union, and I think they leveraged another community to do so,' Williams said.

Mercury Union Accepts Contract Takebacks and Concessions

IAM Local 1947 votes: Yes. Breaking ...

Mercury Marine union workers save the day and the city of Fond du Lac.

Make no mistake, the economic health of the Fox Valley is being borne on the strong backs of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers.

Hail organized labor. Fond du Lac and the entire state owe a debt of gratitude to (IAM) Local 1947!

From (IAM) Local 1947:

Wisconsin Machinists at Mercury Marine

Fond du Lac, Wi,
September 4, 2009

The members of IAM Local 1947 in Fond du Lac, Wi have ratified a modification of their current labor agreement that will result in job security and the movement of jobs from other Mercury Marine locations to Fond du Lac, Wi.

Machinists union leaders met with Mercury Marine top management and with this vote, have a commitment that the company will stay in Fond du Lac, Wi, and move more work to Fond du Lac over time.

Our members vote for the company proposal, while being a very difficult decision, clearly says that they are willing to work with Mercury to secure a sound future for themselves, the company and the community.

Let's be clear. This decision to modify our current labor agreement is a huge sacrifice on the part of our members and should not be taken lightly.

We fully expect Mercury Marine to honor their commitment to keep our jobs in Fond du Lac and their promise to move other work from Mercury Marine facilities to Fond du Lac.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank Governor Jim Dole for the support we have received from the state of Wisconsin.

We are now prepared to move forward.

Russ Krings

District 10 Representative

Mercury Marine Workers See Daylight, Wisc Pols Come Through

Updated: Gov Doyle saved Mercury Marine and 1,000s of other Fox Valley jobs with the biggest incentive package ever given out in Wisconsin.

Updated - "Through the efforts of state and local officials...," reads the (IAM) Local 1947 webpage. That's the lede everyone is looking for.

A radical game changer out of Fond du Lac.

After the city and county of Fond du Lac and Wisconsin put together incentives to keep Mercury Marine jobs in Wisconsin, new word comes that Mercury Marine and the (IAM) Local 1947 [now updated] may strike a deal not only retaining manufacturing jobs but actually moving jobs from Stillwater, Oklahoma, to Fond du Lac.

Details on the negotiations are sketchy but the newly scheduled contract vote on Thursday and Friday may signal some great news coming out of Fondy.

Brunswick Corp. executives likely did not suddenly convert to Louis Uchitelle's concerns expressed in The Disposable American: Layoffs and Their Consequences.

Fond du Lac and Wisconsin offered publicly funded incentive packages to Merc for the benefit of workers and the surrounding communities that constitute nothing less than the dreaded industrial policy.

Wonder how many Sarah Palin-John McCain voters in Fond du Lac County [28,155 GOP to 23,457 for Obama-Biden in 2008] are going to scream: "Socialist!"

From the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM Local Lodge 1947):

Fond du Lac, WI,
September 2, 2009

Through the efforts of state and local officials, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers and Mercury Marine have met and prepared a supplement contract proposal that was presented to the members of Local 1947 on August 23, 2009.

The supplement and the contract proposal will be presented to the IAM Local 1947 membership in a voting process that will take place on Thursday and Friday, September 3rd and 4th, 2009. The supplement contains clarifications of the August 23, 2009 proposal. ...