Harley-Davidson rejected state tax credits worth about $25 million last week, which were an attempt by the Doyle administration to keep the manufacturing jobs the company provides in the state.

In order to receive the tax credits, the company had to agree to employment and wage terms laid out by the governor’s office.

The company said in a statement they did not accept the credits because of these terms, but they do not have any plans to eliminate their 3,000 manufacturing jobs in Wisconsin.

Harley is expecting a reduction in its Wisconsin production workforce once they implement new labor agreements in 2012. That reduction might prevent the company from meeting the technical requirements of the tax credits, such as job retention levels and growth, according to the statement.

Some have expressed concern that the manufacturing jobs will leave Wisconsin despite Harley’s denial they have any plans to do so.

Charles Franklin, a political scientist at the University of Wisconsin, said Harley may just be waiting for Governor-Elect Scott Walker to take over to negotiate a deal since they see him as being more business friendly.

“It may be that Harley thinks it may get a better deal from the Walker administration then it got from the Doyle administration,” Franklin said.

While Harley may deny the change in governor had anything to do with the decision to reject the credits, Franklin said people will have to see if the company comes back to the table.

Negotiations such as the tax credits are commonplace between companies and government officials, according to Wisconsin Democracy Campaign Executive Director Mike McCabe.

“The game they’ve played is good for the politicians and great for the corporations, but it’s too often been a raw deal for taxpayers and workers,” McCabe said in an e-mail to The Badger Herald.

Franklin said while any job loss hurts employees and the state, should Harley-Davidson choose to leave Wisconsin, the state economy will not suffer greatly.

“Harley is a significant employer and certainly a historically significant manufacturer within the state,” Franklin said. “But the total number of jobs that’s involved, while significant, is not a large share of state employment.”