Laborers Take a Day Off
Celebrations here are strong, and for good reason, said Mark Westphal,
president of the labor council, which boasts a membership of 12,000.
“Labor Day is for all workers,” he said, adding that the number of workers in
the Fox Valley belonging to a union is about 20 percent, while nationally it is
13 percent.
“The labor movement is alive in the Fox Valley,” he said.
State of the Unions
"The death of the labor movement has been greatly over-exaggerated," Mark
Westphal, Fox Valley Area Labor Council, said. "We're here for a while and we
are going to be here for a long time to come."
Paper mill nears end
"Obviously, it's sad that this day has finally come," said Mark Westphal,
president of the Neenah-based Fox Valley Area Labor Council, who is running
as a Democrat against state Rep. Dean Kaufert, R-Neenah, for the 55th
Assembly District seat in this fall's election.
"We are losing a manufacturing facility that had such a grand tradition. It's yet
another reminder of the sad state of manufacturing in our state and country."
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Westphal for Assembly
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Wisconsin's 55th Assembly
Mark Westphal for Assembly
945 Hunt Ave - Neenah, WI 54956
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Westphal edges Kaufert in primary votes
NEENAH — Democratic challenger Mark Westphal outpolled Republican
incumbent Dean Kaufert by nearly 200 votes in the primary election for the
55th Assembly District, but neither candidate reads much into the results.
Westphal was unopposed on the Democratic ballot, and Kaufert was
unopposed on the Republican ballot. They did not compete head-to-head.
Still, support for Westphal was strong in Menasha and relatively even with
Kaufert in their hometown of Neenah.
“I am happy with the numbers,” Westphal said today, “but I am not going to sit
on the laurels of any primary numbers. I have a lot of work to do in the next
seven weeks.”
Westphal, president of the Fox Valley Area Labor Council, said his support in
the primary shows that his message is resonating with voters.
He has focused on lowering the cost of health care and health insurance in
Wisconsin, which he said is among the highest in the nation.
“That issue is affecting our job situation more than any direct tax on business,”
he said.
The 55th Assembly District has been stung by recent job losses at Kimberly-
Clark Corp. and Glatfelter. It also could be affected by job losses announced
last week by Banta Corp.
Kaufert said it is unfair to associate him with the job losses.
“I don’t know how much you can blame Dean Kaufert for that,” he said. “These
are a lot of my friends. They are customers of mine. I am doing everything I
can to retain jobs and to get new companies to put their roots here.”
Election profile: 55th Assembly District
Why are you a candidate and what are they key issues? I am very
disillusioned and disappointed with our current Legislature. It has
spent far too much time on partisan politics. Many of the more
important issues — such as health care reform, economic
development, job security and revitalizing our manufacturing sector
— have been ignored. Making health care more affordable and
more accessible to all of the state citizens. Promote a strong
economic development policy that would not only retain existing
jobs, but also recruit new employment opportunities that offer family-
supporting wages and benefits.
I feel strongly about the need to invest in Wisconsin's public
education system, to provide our children with the skills needed to
compete in the global economy. I would also like to create a more
equitable tax system by closing many of our current tax loopholes
and create a system based more on the ability to pay.