The panel reversed a judge's decision to restore collective bargaining powers for public workers after a decade of protest. MILWAUKEE (CN) — A Wisconsin appellate panel revived a controversial labor law Wednesday, stripping certain public employees of collective bargaining powers. Seven unions filed the lawsuit in 2023, arguing Act 10 violates the state constitution’s equal protections clause by dividing public employees into groups of “general” employees and “public safety” employees. The public safety group includes most firefighters, law enforcement officers and state motor vehicle inspectors, excluding conservation wardens, Capitol police and UW-system police. In its opinion, the panel ruled the Legislature had a rational basis for narrowly defining which public safety employees fall within which category.