Interesting. i wouldnt have quessed this result.
MAR 01, 2011 AT 02:30 PM EST
Pew: The public sides with the unions
Joining the CBS/NYT poll from yesterday is this Pew poll with similar, albeit not as dramatic, results. The CBS/NYT poll found a 60-33 split in favor of leaving collective bargaining rights alone, while Pew finds:
By a modest margin, more say they back Wisconsin’s public employee unions rather than the state’s governor in their continuing dispute over collective bargaining rights. Roughly four-in-ten (42%) say they side more with the public employee unions, while 31% say they side more with the governor, Scott Walker, according to the latest Pew Research Center survey, conducted Feb. 24-27 among 1,009 adults.
More detail from Pew:
Democrats overwhelmingly side with the government employee unions in the ongoing dispute in Wisconsin. Two- thirds (67%) say this, compared with just 12% who say they side more with the governor. About half of Republicans (53%) say they side more with Gov. Walker; 17% say they side more with the public employee unions. Independents are evenly divided (39% side more with the unions, 34% more with the governor).
Among those ages 18 to 29, nearly half (46%) say they side more with the public employee unions, while 13% say they side with the governor. Among those 65 and older, the balance is reversed – but the gap more narrow (45% say they side more with the governor, 33% with the unions).
While whites are nearly evenly divided (38% unions, 36% governor), non-white people are much more likely to say they side more with the unions that represent public employee workers (51% vs. 19%).
Walker continues to lose the public relations war. That's something every Republican politician should note: union-busting is a fail with the public.