Labor history added to state curricula

Season’s greetings! I’m pleased to announce that Dec. 10, Governor Doyle signed into law Assembly Bill 172 (AB 172), the Labor History Instruction Bill. The bill, which I coauthored with Senator Hanson (D-Green Bay) and Representative Jorgensen (D-Fort Atkinson), adds the history of organized labor to Wisconsin’s model academic standards for social studies. This means that soon every student who graduates from a Wisconsin school will know how important the labor movement was in creating some of the most basic workplace rights that Wisconsin families enjoy today.

Current law requires each school board to provide an instructional program designed to give pupils knowledge of state, national, and world history. AB 172 ensures that a unit on labor history be included in these social studies courses.

Any piece of legislation that gets signed into law represents the work of dozens of people both in and outside of the state Legislature. I want to single out one person in particular, Ken Germanson, a resident of a Bay View and the 20th Assembly District. Ken has been working on this bill for more than a decade and was absolutely instrumental in its passage. 

The morning of the Assembly Labor Committee’s public hearing on the bill, Ken stopped by my office and noticed the photo of the Bay View Rolling Mill on the wall. The picture inspired him to share with the committee the story of the Bay View Massacre, when the National Guard fired on workers striking for an eight-hour day. This story is one of many that our children need to learn about so they understand the sacrifices that went into many of things we take for granted these days, like the 40-hour work week, the weekend, overtime pay, or worker’s compensation.

Passage of the Labor History Instruction Bill will go a long way toward helping future generations remember the deep heritage and tradition of Milwaukee and Wisconsin’s working men and women. Full text of the bill is available online: http://www.legis.state.wi.us/2009/data/AB-172.pdf

Have a safe and happy holiday season and a wonderful new year!

Chris Sinicki is the state representative for Wisconsin’s 20th state Assembly District, which includes southern Bay View, St. Francis, Cudahy, the airport, and other parts of the south side. Her website is chrissinicki.net and she can be reached at (888) 534-0020 or rep.sinicki@legis.wi.gov.