Apr
2016 27
2016 27
Coalition of AFL-CIO, Building Trades Locals Sue Michigan Over Anti-Union Campaign Finance Law
A group of Michigan unions have filed a lawsuit against a law that allows corporations, but not unions, to use payroll deductions for contributions to political action committees. The sweeping election law also banned elected officials in local governments from talking about ballot proposals or millage issues in the 60 days before an…
Apr
2016 13
2016 13
Dangerous Michigan Bill Would Triple the Number of Less-Skilled Electricians on Worksites
A bill that would drastically change the journeyman-to-apprentice ratio on Michigan construction sites in the electrical profession has passed the State Senate and awaits the signature of Gov. Rick Snyder. In January, the House version of the bill, HB 4813, passed by a 58-48 margin. HB 4813, opposed by the Michigan Building and…
Feb
2016 1
2016 1
2015 DATA: WI is a Union Membership Cesspool, but Numbers Remained Flat in OH, Rose in MI
While union membership rates remained unchanged nationally from 2014 to 2015, they dropped significantly in the state of Wisconsin. For the first time in its history, the state fell below the national average. In 2015, only 8.3 percent of Wisconsin’s workforce paid dues to unions, or a total of 223,000 workers. In 2014, roughly…
Jan
2016 13
2016 13
MI GOP Passes 11th-Hour Measure Limiting Union Political Activities Despite Admitting It Was Rushed
Added at the last minute to the 53 pages of Michigan’s Senate Bill 571 — and buried, at that — was a provision that prohibits corporations from collecting contributions to a union’s political action committee. Labor advocates have a term for this type of legislation: paycheck deception. The Republicans who snuck it in use…
Nov
2015 10
2015 10
MI Gov. Finally Set to Sign Road Funding Deal After Years of Political Infighting
After years of negotiations and political infighting, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder will sign a bill to provide $1.2 billion in funding for roads. Late last week the Republican-controlled Senate voted 20-18 in favor of key pieces of the legislation, which the House eventually passed. The $1.2 billion in funding will be made up of [&hellip…;
Nov
2015 3
2015 3
Death of a Salesman: MI Prevailing Wage Repeal Kaput After Fake, Duplicate Signatures Confirmed
Protect Michigan Taxpayers, the dark money group led by the Associated Builders and Contractors and the DeVos Family, has pulled their petition to have a prevailing wage repeal initiative appear on the 2016 ballot after their own analysis showed that many of the signatures they gathered were duplicates. The likelihood of illegal…
Oct
2015 27
2015 27
Sigmund Fraud: More Than 100,000 Prevailing Wage Repeal Signatures Appear Invalid in MI
The effort to repeal the prevailing wage in Michigan via ballot initiative has hit a major stumbling block. A sample taken by the state Board of Elections found that many of the signatures turned in by anti-wage front group, Protect Michigan Taxpayers, were invalid. The labor-backed group working to fight repeal, Protect Michigan Jobs,…
Oct
2015 26
2015 26
MI Vets Oppose Prevailing Wage Repeal: “It’s gonna be impossible to have a truly professional experienced workforce”
In Michigan, a group of veterans have come out in support of the prevailing wage, arguing that construction jobs can create solid careers for those who have served their country. As we have extensively covered, a group called Protect Michigan Taxpayers collected signatures to put a prevailing wage repeal on the ballot in 2016, [&hellip…;
Oct
2015 1
2015 1
Contractors: Prevailing Wage Repeal in MI Will Crush Workforce, Training Opportunities for Youth
On Monday, members of Michigan Prevails, an organization of construction and trades groups, held a press conference to push back against prevailing wage repeal. They called for the public to be given the chance to decide the law’s fate while contractors predicted the downfall of workforce development. The press conference coincided…
Sep
2015 17
2015 17
Former Assoc. Builders & Contractors Lobbyist Op-Ed Dismantled by Actual Economist
Responding to an op-ed by former Associated Builders and Contractors officer George Hawkins that cast shadows on a Smart Cities Prevail wage study, economist Kevin Duncan dismantled the anti-union lobby’s talking points on the San Diego Source. After explaining the process by which he conducts his peer reviewed studies, Duncan…
Sep
2015 8
2015 8
More Reports of MI Signature Collectors Lying to Get Prevailing Wage Repeal on the Ballot
In Michigan, the well-funded wage opposition group Protecting Michigan Taxpayers is reporting that it is nearing the 252,523 signatures it needs to place a repeal of the prevailing wage on the ballot. Using this method, Michigan Republicans can bypass Gov. Rick Snyder who opposes repeal and promised to veto the toxic middle class attack….
Aug
2015 24
2015 24
MI Legislature Adjourns Without Road Funding Deal; GOP House Holding Construction Wages Hostage
The Michigan legislature has adjourned through Labor Day without reaching consensus on how to fund a road reconstruction deal. A day of closed-door talks last week did not solve the problem. While both the House and Senate have passed separate funding plans, they have yet to hammer out their differences. The Senate’s $1.5 billion…