Crain’s Chicago Business: Rauner “Union” Plan Would Save 0.74%-- “Not Much More Than a Rounding Error”

When Bruce Rauner promised to “shake things up,” he really meant to “destroy unions in Illinois.” One key idea in the turnaround plan is to eliminate prevailing wage. This term means that public construction contracts must pay the equivalent of union wages. In theory, the governor’s argument makes sense: Illinois seems to be overpaying. But Crain’s Chicago Business says: “just for the sake of argument, let's take the proponents at their word on this particular topic. A June, 2014 study conducted by the Anderson Economic Group for the far-right Illinois Policy Institute, the Illinois Association of School Boards, the Illinois Chamber and the Illinois Black Chamber found that eliminating the prevailing wage would've saved local school districts $126.4 million in 2011 (that's in 2013 dollars, by the way). According to the state's Commission on Governmental Forecasting and Accountability, local school districts extended (billed) $16.4 billion in property taxes in 2011. Adjust that 2011 amount to 2013 dollars to even it out with the Anderson study and we get $16.98 billion. So, even if every single local school district throughout Illinois immediately stopped paying prevailing wage rates on construction projects (not gonna happen) and even if eliminating the prevailing wage does indeed save as much as the Anderson study projected (doubtful), school districts could've saved a grand total of 0.74 percent of their property tax budgets, which is not much more than a rounding error. Now figure, in reality, savings of at most half that amount and we're looking at about a third of a percentage point. That's not even a rounding error.” Again, this analysis is from a major business paper—not a shill for labor. The article is here.