On Job-Killing, Walker Is The Hands-On Expert

Scott Walker "lashed out" before a friendly, special-interest audience the other day against those supporting a hike in the minimum wage, the AP reported. 

The Journal Sentinel also reported Walker said those supporting the wage boost had a "job-killing agenda."

If there's anyone who would know what job-killing looks like, it would be Walker, because when he turned back federal funding in 2011 for the Amtrak line between Madison and Milwaukee he killed considerable construction employment the Wisconsin DOT had identified and enumerated, along with continuing operations and spin-off development work, as the Journal Sentinel had reported in 2010:

Counting "indirect" jobs at suppliers would add another 152 jobs this year, 479 next year, 647 in 2012, 202 in 2013, 54 in 2014 and 11 in 2015. State and local government jobs, including planners, engineers and project managers, would total 67 this year, 212 next year, 291 in 2012, 109 in 2013, 47 in 2014 and 26 in 2015...personnel hired by the state Department of Transportation for this project would hold their jobs no more than four years.

Therefore, total employment specifically linked to the train line would be 1,100 this year, 3,483 next year, 4,732 in 2012, 1,542 in 2013, 483 in 2014 and 167 in 2015.

The remaining jobs that the state claims would be created - 181 this year, 577 next year, 803 in 2012, 305 in 2013, 138 in 2014 and 83 in 2015 - would be "induced" employment, or jobs at stores, restaurants and other businesses where the railroad workers would spend their wages.

Walker's probable opponent, Democratic businesswoman Mary Burke, supports raising the minimum wage from $7.25 per hour to $10.10 - - the same level approved recently by President Obama for future federal contract employees, such as kitchen staffers serving US soldiers.

By the way, the state is looking at a possible $66 million breach-of-contract claim by the Spanish train maker Talgo because when Walker killed the train, the Legislature also shut down the manufacturing line and repair shop Talgo had installed in a low-income Milwaukee neighborhood.

Now there was some job-killing.