Outsourcing and Privatization at UW-Superior Continues a Troubling Trend

University of Wisconsin-Superior officials recently announced that the school is entering into negotiations with a private company based in Tennessee to take over the school’s custodial and ground services. Twenty-four union workers were laid off as a result, and most had been working at the school for ten years or more. This isn’t the first instance of a UW System school outsourcing parts of its staff; earlier this year, Superior and all UW System 2-year campuses outsourced their bookstores to a Nebraska company, and UW Marathon County laid off nine union employees when it outsourced its custodial services. Sadly, it also might not be the last.

UW-Superior administrators cited a budget deficit as the reason for the move, and according to Chancellor Renee Wachter, drops in state funding are at least partially to blame for that deficit. Public education at all levels, including higher education, has been a frequent target of Governor Walker and the Republican-controlled Legislature over the last four years, and we are now starting to see some of the consequences. The schools’ budget deficits combined with Walker’s Act 10 legislation virtually eliminating collective bargaining rights for public employees made these schools choices to privatize and outsource these modest-wage jobs quite easy. With Governor Walker, Assembly Speaker Robin Vos and other Republican leaders again signaling that UW System funding could take a hit, I’m fearfully that this is a decision that more of our UW schools will be forced to make. However, it’s the wrong decision. Outsourcing these jobs reduces accountability and undercuts working-class families while lining the pockets of out-of-state executives, and in the broader budget picture, the amount these changes will save is miniscule. Our communities can’t afford to see these family-supporting jobs replaced by low-wage, low-benefit employment. It’s a race to the bottom, and the working families of Wisconsin are the losers.