It doesn't take a genius to figure out what unions are getting from all the muscle-flexing going on in Wisconsin. But for public employees who are the members of these unions -- and I'm talking about teachers more than any other group -- protesting Wisconsin-style comes at great risk.
For Florida teachers, the risk is closer to certainty. It's personal and it's not about being part of some grand brotherhood. It's a risk they shouldn't take. Period.
You just can't compare the citizens' perception of unions in Florida and Wisconsin.
In Wisconsin, you would think Scott Walker could eat unions for lunch. After all, the new Republican governor saw the GOP take both chambers of the Legislature in November. But unions -- biggest contributor by far to the Democratic Party -- are strong in the Badger State. Public-employee unions especially. Wisconsin was the first state to let government workers unionize in 1959. So, Walker's attempts to roll back the unions' collective bargaining rights aren't exactly a slam dunk.
The unions are taking this golden opportunity to energize their base. What a perfect grandstand to show their members, forced to join or else, how good it is to mandatorily direct-deposit their dues into the union coffers every paycheck and how much support they get for their money. And what an opportunity to use American workers to lead the Democrats to victory in 2012.
Unions in Wisconsin get between $400 and $1,400 a year in dues from every member. If Walker has his way, the union can still charge its members what it likes, but it will have to collect the money itself.
Here's the problem with the union hullaballoo for anybody who doesn't live in Wisconsin, especially those in right-to-work states like Florida.
It's a lot like Wisconsin's famous stinky cheese, this problem. The stuff is so potent, at first it's irresistible.
It gets you plenty of attention, but before you know it, it's taken you over. You're wearing eau de Stilton and it begins to define you.
That's the stinky-cheese effect, and, believe me, you don't want it.
The easiest way for Florida teachers to stay away from the cheese is to face reality. And the reality is this:
Most Floridians don't belong to unions. They don't live in a union culture and they have little sympathy for union members or patience for union shenanigans.
Nor are Floridians morons. They might not know the specifics, but the majority are aware that salaries don't differ so much between government and private-business employees. They know it's the whopping benefits package that eats up their tax dollars. The package for state workers pensions, health care, vacations is worth on average nationwide, 60 percent more than the private sector's, according to the federal Bureau of Economic Analysis.
Though all those benefits might not apply to teachers, it's the perception teachers still must fight.
Floridians beyond Capital Circle may not love every move Gov. Rick Scott is making, but they're rooting for his plan to create jobs and balance the budget. The last thing they're looking for is their teachers out in the street waving a sign that says, "We want ..." And they have little use -- trust me on this one -- for union doctors walking through the crowd handing out fake medical excuse notes for teachers who are protesting instead of teaching.
More than once I've heard complaints: "Some example for students" and "I wish I could just cut out and get paid for it like the teachers do." That goes for another group of protesters, incidentally, Wisconsin's Democratic state senators. They remain AWOL, in hiding out of state somewhere.
While it's true, Florida teachers are unlikely to go to the same extremes as Wisconsin teachers, Floridians who have been watching the antics and listening to rhetoric and political bombast unfold for nearly two weeks in Madison, already have Wisconsin on the brain.
However unfair it may be, Florida taxpayers already are making mental comparisons.
On Friday I had a telephone call from a woman in Fort Myers asking me about the planned protest March 8. She wanted to know if Florida teachers are going to crowd into the Capitol and stop state government "when we so badly need the Legislature to get down to business." She asked, "Do we have to pay these teachers who think it's more important to protest than go to work?"
Teachers, if you just talk about this together, it's like having a conversation with yourself. It won't help you put your own personal protest in perspective.
If you ate the cheese, it's up to you to assess the effect it's having on others. Just be careful. Floridians, like all Americans, desperately want to think the best of their teachers. Take care how you conduct yourself, show your community where your priorities lie. It is they who pay your salary, the union does not.
No heroes or zeroes here. Not this week. Just a perception that needs a closer look.
Columnist Nancy Smith can be reached at nsmith@sunshinestatenews.com or at (850) 727-0859.
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