Labor coalition aims to get union amendment on November ballot

Fantastic news! In the Detroit News and WJBK Fox Detroit, Michigan residents would have a constitutional right to join and form labor unions in public and private employment under a proposed constitutional amendment unveiled Tuesday at the Michigan State Capitol.

Protect Our Jobs, a coalition of labor unions and workers, needs the signatures of nearly 322,609 registered voters by July 9 to get the amendment on the November ballot, according to the Michigan Department of State.

The proposed amendment would afford workers a guaranteed right to bargain for wages, benefits and working conditions with employers in the public and private sectors, said Todd Cook, state director of We Are the People, a coalition of labor unions, students and social groups backing the initiative.

Cook said the amendment also could prevent the Legislature from imposing a proposed right-to-work law in Michigan.

Right-to-work laws are bad for the middle class and local communities because it cuts wages and salaries, health care benefits, retirement security and safety protections! The Republican-controlled Michigan Legislature wants to protect Wall Street-related corporate special interests. Help Michigan remain a pro-collective bargaining state.