On the heels of his destructive budget proposal, Green Bay area residents gathered to discuss how President Trump’s economic agenda has impacted working Wisconsinites
GREEN BAY, Wis. — Today, Opportunity Wisconsin held a community roundtable at Kavarna Coffeehouse in Green Bay to uplift the stories of working-and middle-class Wisconsinites who are struggling under President Trump’s economic agenda. This event comes the day after President Trump unveiled his 2021 budget, which significantly slashes programs and services aimed at supporting Wisconsin’s workers, while giving a leg up to the wealthy and well-connected.
View and download photos from today’s event.
“I’ve lived in Green Bay for 40 years, and worked at Shopko Stores since moving to Green Bay, until last year when it closed,” said Jim Jordan. “We all of a sudden were not a viable company. We had been bought out by a venture capital organization a few years ago that had a reputation for buying out and chopping up companies. We were surprised by how long we were actually able to keep the company, but we were so surprised by how quickly everything fell apart...The speed of how it all transpired was the most shocking.”
Shopko, a Wisconsin-based company, was taken over by Wall Street private equity firm Sun Capital Equity. Instead of keeping the company afloat, Sun Capital Equity ultimately led Shopko to declare bankruptcy last year — all Shopko stores are now closed. This resulted in 2,725 jobs stolen from Wisconsinites, 52 closed stores, and a closed support center.
President Trump’s 2017 tax cuts drastically reduced the corporate income tax rate from 35% to 21%, which provided a massive break to Wall Street giants like Sun Capital Equity and kept tax loopholes in place that they and other hedge funds exploit to buy out jobs and bankrupt small businesses.
“[People are saying] our economy is booming, but it's just not booming for everyone,” said Steve McFarland, Greater Green Bay Labor Council President. “A gas station employee is receiving the minimum wage, which is nowhere near the [living] wage. Some of these folks will have 2 or 3 jobs, thinking that that additional [income] may put them where they need so that their kids won't be hungry at school.”
Wages have been stagnant in Wisconsin for decades — adjusted for inflation, the median wage in Wisconsin has only risen 73 cents since 1979. Instead of giving hard-working Wisconsinites a boost, President Trump blocked a federal minimum wage increase, a move that denied more than 800,000 Badger State residents a pay increase and resulted in $3 billion in lost wages.
Many of these same workers are now facing sky-high debts and are being forced to decide between daily necessities like food and medicine just to survive. In 2017, 22 percent of Wisconsin residents stopped taking the prescription drugs they need because the costs were too high.
“We were raised to save money,” said Connie Jordan. “I used to teach financial literacy, and you teach that, ‘out of your income, you try to save 10%,’ but when you live day-to-day how are you supposed to save? Where are we going to be 10-15 years out? What is the future going to look like when you can’t save into retirement, and are living hand to mouth? The whole economy is impacted by that.”
About Opportunity Wisconsin
Opportunity Wisconsin is a coalition of Wisconsin residents fighting for an economy that works for working people. Through our stories, we’re elevating the real consequences of the destructive economic policies championed by President Trump and his allies these past three years, and showing how they have made Wisconsin’s economy worse off. Join us in demanding our elected officials focus more on growing the economy for middle class folks and expanding opportunity for all Wisconsinites, not just the wealthy few. To learn more about Opportunity Wisconsin, visit OpportunityWisconsin.org or stay connected on Twitter at @OpportunityWI and on Facebook at Facebook.com/OpportunityWI.
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