Union members from across the state flocked to the Illinois State Fair yesterday on Governor's Day in a show of action against the politician they helped get elected. State workers protested Governor's Day to speak out against the Gov. Pat Quinn's decision to break contracts with unions by reneging on promised raises, which would have amounted to 5.25 percent increases by February 1. A portion of the raises had already been deferred by unions, they say, to help alleviate the state's money woes. The rallying workers, prompted by the We Are One collaboration of unions supporting the AFL-CIO, say the biggest problem with Quinn's decision to pull back on fulfilling the promised raises is the breach of contract and what that means for collective bargaining in a state that has traditionally respected workers' rights and their ability to negotiate as a unit.

"The governor is breaking the contract. It's not so much the raise, it's the contract," said Billie Green, pictured above, of the Department of Juvenile Justice. "If he's breaking the contract, what makes us think he can run the state? He's not above the law."

Holding signs that read: "Gov. Quinn Keep Your Word" and "Collective Bargaining Is The American Way", the state workers set up shop at the entrances of the fair to let attendees know about their grievance with the governor for breaking his promised contractual obligation to administer the pay increases. But Gov. Quinn says he had no choice but to back pedal on the contract he made with union workers.

"Working people are behind me. I know that every day," Quinn told the Sun-Times. "Working people around Illinois understand if the Legislature doesn’t appropriate money for pay raises for any people, they don’t get pay raises. There is no money to pay these pay raises.’"

But state workers aren't buying Quinn's argument. They say he should fulfill their collective bargaining agreement regardless of the actions of the legislature. Here's what the protesting state workers had to say about the broken contract and why they felt compelled to head to Springfield to make their voices heard on the issue:

"I came to raise hell, to fight for our right to collective bargaining. It's the American way. Without it comes the disintegration of American freedom." -- Heather Carver, Department of Healthcare and Family Services, Springfield

"I'm here to support my fellow union members. If Quinn is going to renege on this deal, he'll renege on all sorts of deals. I'm old fashioned -- I think if you make an agreement, you should stick with it." -- Roger Chappell, retired state employee from Alton

"I'm tired of the governor's office allowing a lie to continue about our pensions. We have paid our share. I want the governor to stick to the results of binding arbitration, that's what the contract says." -- Scott Comrie, staff trainer, Alton Mental Health Center

"I'm here to fight for the union's cause and to show the governor he should keep his promises to us." -- Dianna Maged, Department of Employment Security, Danville

"I want to encourage Gov. Quinn to keep his word." -- Penny Fuller, Department of Employment Security, Danville

"I'm here to support my brothers and sisters. The governor should keep his word." -- Vendetta Dennis, Department of Children and Family Services, East St. Louis 

"I feel the governor broke his word on our contract and it needs to be made right. His word means nothing if he doesn't keep by it and live by the contract. It's just as bad as the governors of the other states, because we have a signed contract and he chooses to withhold our raises." -- Aaron Priddy, correctional officer, Menard

"What brought me here? She did. By unfairly freezing my pay, the governor is taking food out of her mouth. As her dad, I won't stand for that." -- Adam Deadmond, correctional officer from Centralia, and his daughter Kalissa

Images courtesy of the We Are One Coalition