Democratic lawmakers in the upper chamber of the Michigan Legislature voted to repeal the state’s 2012 “right-to-work” law, which prohibits public and private unions from requiring that nonunion employees pay union dues. After a decision is made on which version of the bill to send to the governor, it is expected to be signed into law.
At present, 27 states have “right-to-work” laws to protect the rights of non-union employees. Michigan is set to become the first state in nearly 60 years to repeal such a law. Repealing the 2012 law would also undo part of Rick Snyder’s legacy, the Republican governor of Michigan who preceded Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer.
“Many job providers will be less willing to locate or expand in Michigan if we repeal our right-to-work status,” state senator Thomas Albert (R., Lowell) said to the Detroit Free Press. Albert was the lone Republican on Michigan’s Senate Labor Committee that heard testimony on the legislation earlier in the day before sending it the bill to a floor vote.
“This is about forcing Michigan workers to join a union. If a union is providing the value, then people will join,” explained House Minority Leader Matt Hall (R., Kalamazoo) to the Freep last week when the House’s bill passed.
Democrats have countered the law was meant to deliberately hurt labor unions and to allow some employees to benefit from unions’ collective bargaining efforts while not contributing themselves. Repealing the law has been a focus of Democrats...
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