The president spoke Thursday afternoon at UW-La Crosse on the same day that Governor Walker reportedly signed papers to mount a run for the GOP presidential nomination. He's expected to formally announce his candidacy on July 13 in Waukesha.
Obama did not mention Walker by name, but drew applause from the crowd when saying that people's "right to organize and bargain was attacked," an apparent reference to the governor's Act 10 that stripped away public union rights and the right-to-work law he signed this year, which outlaws mandatory union dues in the private sector.
The president also touted his plan to make more salaried workers eligible for mandatory overtime pay.
Hundreds of people attended the La Crosse speech.