The Michigan Senate approved a bill on March 14 to repeal the 2012 right-to-work law that made paying dues or agency fees to a union at unionized workplaces optional.
The bill narrowly passed along party lines in a 20–17 vote. A similar package of three bills passed the House the previous week, meaning the two chambers will have to decide on which version to send to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to be signed.
Whitmer, a Democrat, has said she will sign the bill into law once it reaches her desk.
The right-to-work law was enacted in 2012 under a GOP-dominated Legislature, and while it allowed public and private unions the right to organize and collectively bargain, it banned them from requiring nonunion employees to pay union fees as a condition of employment, even if the union bargains on their behalf.
Currently, 27 states have right-to-work laws in place to protect the rights of nonunion employees, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
‘Freeloading’ Off the System
Democrats praised the bill before the vote, arguing that it is needed to prevent people from “freeloading off of a system” and receiving benefits and health care as a result of unions’ collective bargaining efforts without having to contribute to the effort themselves via fees.Democrat state Sen. Darrin Camilleri, who introduced the bill repealing Michigan’s right-to-work law for private sector workers, said the previous law had made it systematically more difficult for unions to do their jobs.
“It created an environment where unions were put at a disadvantage when it came to negotiating for better pay and benefits for workers across the board,” Camilleri said on the Senate floor. “I am not in the business of competing with states like Alabama and other places in the South. We want to be the best in the country and in order to do that, we need to restore workers’ rights across the board, and that starts today, right here in Michigan.”
Democrat state Sen. Winnie Brinks was among the lawmakers who praised the bill.
Concerns Over Bill’s Impact on Employment
However, Republican lawmakers opposed the move, arguing that it could lead to a decline in employment in the state and Michigan’s economic competitiveness.Whitmer told reporters on March 13 that she plans to sign the bill.
“I have made a promise to restore workers’ rights in Michigan. I have fought against the creation of this barrier in the first place,” she said.
Another bill aiming to create a tax credit for union dues has been sponsored by 34 House Democrats.