Lawmakers work to get Veterans Day a paid holiday, day off for vets

GREEN BAY, Wis. (WFRV) As Americans honor veterans Sunday, one group in Brown County says more can be done to celebrate our service men and women.  Local 5 spoke with the group and a State Senator hoping to turn Veteran's Day into paid holiday for vets.

For Jim Haskins, the Brown County Veteran's Memorial hits home.  "I'm thinking about all the sacrifices these guys made that never came back from the war," he said.

A Vietnam vet, Haskins is a member of the Brown County Veteran's Recognition Subcommittee.  Their mission is to get Veteran's Day turned into a paid day off for vets in Wisconsin.  It's been harder than you might think.  "A lot of people are reluctant to give us days off" he said.

Veteran's Day is already a federal holiday, so the post office and banks have off.  But that does not apply to private businesses or state and local workers.

Senator Dave Hansen, encouraged by the subcommittee, introduced a bill to the state legislature that would give Wisconsin veterans paid leave.  But it hasn't gained any traction -dying in committee on three separate occasions.  Both Hansen and Haskins blame a down economy.

Veterans say, whether the bill makes it through the state legislature or not, men and women who served in uniform should get the day off.

Hansen says he'll keep pushing the legislation and plans to re-introduce the bill when lawmakers return in January.