Labor Unions Retake Michigan – WSJ

How can a law that has delivered so much be so close to repeal? On Nov. 8, Democrats gained complete control of state government for the first time in 40 years. Gov.

Gretchen Whitmer

won re-election and Democrats took majorities in both chambers of the Legislature. The state Senate hasn’t been held by Democrats since

Ronald Reagan’s

first term.

Repealing right to work is one of Democrats’ top priorities in the new legislative session starting in January. The incoming House majority floor leader, Rep.

Abraham Aiyash,

responded “absolutely” when asked if repeal was on the docket.

Dayna Polehanki,

the incoming Senate majority caucus chairman, declared: “Get ready for some cha-cha-cha-changes here in Michigan . . . union-busting ‘right-to-work’ is gonna go bye-bye.”

Most notably, Ms. Whitmer has stated that she is “very interested” in repealing right to work and that “no one should be surprised” by her position. No surprise indeed: Unions donated almost $2 million to her campaign, along with millions more to the Michigan Democratic Party.

So why do unions want repeal? Money. About 20% of Michigan private sector union members have left their unions since right-to-work went into effect, including over 7% of United Auto Workers members and 65% of Service Employees International Union members. That’s not even counting the workers who never joined a union because right to work gave them that option.

This exodus deprives unions of millions of dollars in dues, much of which goes toward political donations that overwhelmingly benefit Democrats. Repealing right to work would force tens of thousands of workers to pay unions again just to keep their jobs. The unions, in turn, will have even more money to spend on elections.

Yet paying off labor unions comes at a high cost for everyone else. Right to work made Michigan a more attractive place for business. It led many companies to expand their operations, while others moved here outright, bringing big benefits to workers and families. From 2012 to 2021, median household income rose by 36.5%, higher than the average for states without right to work. Unemployment has dropped by more than a third, once again better than non-right-to-work states. And Michigan has seen a bigger drop in poverty than all but two states that force workers to pay unions.

The right-to-work law has boosted Michigan’s all-important manufacturing sector. The portion of manufacturing jobs in Michigan counties is 26.1% higher than it would have been without the law. In neighboring Ohio, which doesn’t have a right-to-work law, counties saw a 30% decrease. Michigan is likely adding manufacturing jobs at Ohio’s expense.

Perhaps most remarkably, right to work has forced labor unions to become more responsive to workers. Michigan’s unions must prove that dues are worth paying, since workers can walk away at any point. Some Michigan union leaders have unwittingly admitted as much. The state AFL-CIO president boasted in 2018 that unions saw their biggest jump in membership in a decade, while saying they’re stronger than they were before the right-to-work law’s passage. He was trying to criticize the law for being ineffective, yet he should have thanked it for helping unions provide more value to potential members.

All this progress is now at risk. The only good news is that it isn’t clear whether Democrats have the votes. The incoming Democratic Senate and House majorities are narrow, at 20-18 and 56-54, respectively. If two moderate Democrats in either chamber get cold feet, the law will stand, since Republicans are united behind it. It may be hard for some Democrats to strike the killing blow to a policy that has breathed new life into the state.

Right to work is the cornerstone of Michigan’s dramatic economic revival since the Great Recession. Repealing it is foolish, especially with another recession on the horizon. Our state needs all the help it can get to continue growing. If Democrats repeal right to work after 10 years, they’ll likely spend the next four years explaining why another revival is nowhere to be seen.

Mr. Delie is director of labor policy at the Mackinac Center for Public Policy and a legal and policy adviser at Workers for Opportunity.