Michigan House Approves Controversial 'Right-To-Work' Legislation Amid Protests [UPDATE]
By aaroncynic in News on Dec 11, 2012 6:40PM
Michigan State Police leave a staging area to walk through the crowd of union members who gathered from around the country to rally at the Michigan State Capitol to protest a vote on Right-to-Work legislation on Tuesday in Lansing, Mich. (Photo by Bill Pugliano/Getty Images)
UPDATE (5 p.m.): Gov. Rick Snyder has signed the measures into law.
The Michigan House voted 58 to 51 to pass contentious legislation making the traditionally labor-friendly state a “right to work” state, as thousands of demonstrators protested outside the capitol. The two bills (one regulating public sector and one for private sector) has been pushed quickly through a lame duck session, skipping the committee process. It cleared the Michigan Senate on Friday and is expected to receive the stamp of approval from Republican Gov. Rick Snyder, perhaps even by the end of the day.
Thousands of protesters congregated in Lansing, and Michigan State Police were prepared with riot gear. According to the Lansing State Journal, tear gas was sprayed at least once, and at least one person has been injured by a horse-mounted officer. At one point, protesters tore down a tent occupied by a pro-right-to-work group. Estimates place the crowd at about 13,000 people. Some area schools were closed today as many teachers walked out to join the protests.
The right-to-work bill means workplaces can no longer be “closed shops,” which require union membership or the payment of dues, with the exception of police and fire unions. Michigan is the 24th right-to-work state, but a significant population, 17.5 percent of workers, belong to unions, making it the right-to-work state with the highest percentage of union membership.
Opponents of the legislation say that it will severely diminish the power of unionized workers and collective bargaining. Steve Cook, president of the Michigan Education Association, told the Philadelphia Inquirer “Whether proponents call this 'right-to-work' or 'freedom-to-work,' it's really just 'freedom to freeload.” Some say that the legislation is retaliation for union support of President Barack Obama during the election.
Obama delivered a speech (video below) at the Daimler Detroit Diesel plant in Redford, Mich., on Monday. “You know, these so-called right-to-work laws," Obama said, "they don’t have to do with economics, they have everything to do with politics. What they’re really talking about is giving you the right to work for less money.”
Roland Zullo, a researcher at the University of Michigan’s Institute for Labor and Industrial Relations told the LA Times “This is being done politically, rushed through with very little debate — I don’t think many legislators have seen the law.” “There’s retribution on many levels here.”
Gov. Snyder, who is expected to sign the bill today, said that while he supports unions, the legislation opens up options for people and business. “I continue to be an advocate for collective bargaining in Michigan. ... This is to give people the ability to choose and decide who they associate with,” he told the Philadelphia Inquirer.