LANSING (AP) — Here are five things to know about right-to-work legislation approved by the Michigan Legislature and signed into law by Gov. Rick Snyder:
The Name Is Misleading: It isn't about a right to work but rather a right for workers to choose whether they want to join a union or pay fees that amount to union dues.
It Moved Swiftly: The GOP majority used its superior numbers and backing from Gov. Rick Snyder to ramrod legislation through the House and Senate last week. Snyder signed the bills into law Tuesday, hours after the final House votes.
But Didn't Over Easily: Critics, including Democrats and Michigan's sizable labor contingent, contend the real intent is to bleed unions of money and bargaining power and allow nonunion workers to get the perks without paying for it.
It's Not The First: Michigan becomes the 24th state with such laws. Victory in the Great Lakes State gives the right-to-work movement its strongest foothold yet in the Rust Belt region.
Rust Belt Rerun?: Law enforcement officials vowed Michigan won't become "another Wisconsin," where demonstrators occupied the state Capitol around the clock for nearly three weeks. They took steps to prevent that.
Michigan
5 things to know about right-to-work law
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Disabled vets could see some property tax relief
Some disabled veterans living in Michigan could get some relief next tax season under legislation being debated in the state Senate.
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Work done at ex-brownfield site on Detroit River
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Audit questions use of state petroleum tax
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Hope College plans new art museum
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Michigan in Brief: 05/17/2013
Michigan may get $2.3M in drug claims; Albion is closing its public high school; Long line already for one tough mayorship.
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Sole survivor of plane crash breaks silence
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Michigan in Brief: 05/16/2013
Bricks from MSU building to be sold; Cruise ship will stay in Marquette.
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Surplus may go to roads
There was no dearth of ideas about what to do with the state’s newfound $483 million surplus on Wednesday after Michigan budget experts made the dollar figure official.
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Report card: Great Lakes still have big problems
A decades-old effort to nurse the battered Great Lakes to health has made progress toward reducing toxic pollution and slamming the door on invasive species, but the freshwater seas continue to face serious threats, a U.S.-Canadian agency said Tuesday.
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Bing won't seek re-election as Detroit mayor
A visibly frustrated Detroit Mayor Dave Bing announced Tuesday that he won’t seek a second term and ripped Michigan officials for not giving him enough time to solve the financially strapped city’s problems on his own.
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Saudi man traveling with pressure cooker arrested
A Saudi man was arrested at Detroit Metropolitan Airport after federal agents said he lied about why he was traveling with a pressure cooker, but his nephew said Monday that it was all a misunderstanding about a device he simply wanted for cooking.
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Memorial wall comes with some tough calls
Deciding which police officers killed in the line of duty belong on a national memorial usually is driven by facts and presents few obstacles.
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Lawmakers debating merit pay for teachers
Michigan teachers’ performance in the classroom would play a bigger role in the amount they get in their paychecks under a proposal being debated in the Republican-controlled state House.
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Disabled vets could see some property tax relief
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