State Rep. Sarah Lightner today voted to protect the rights of Michigan workers by standing against the repeal of Michigan’s Right to Work law.

House Bills 4004-05, which Lansing Democrats pushed through the House this evening, take away the rights of Michigan workers to decide on their own whether they want to join a union.

“Union membership and union dues should not be a required condition of employment,” said Lightner, of Springport. “That should be a choice a worker makes if they see value in the services a union is providing. These bills take away that choice.”

Lightner also voted against House Bill 4007, which re-enacts Michigan’s prevailing wage requirement, noting that it adds to taxpayer costs.

“Michigan taxpayers want to get the most bang for their buck. There is no reason they should be called upon to pay artificially high prices for every public works project that gets completed,” Lightner said. “But now Lansing Democrats want to reinstate the prevailing wage law and make sure that union agreements once again supersede all other wage and hour standards for government construction.

“Republicans have fought to keep spending under control in Lansing. These policies just add to the reckless spending of Democrats. Workers should be able to keep more of their paychecks and not have to pay a premium on projects because of costly policies.

“With the repeal of Right to Work and the reinstitution of prevailing wage, Michigan taxpayers will pay a premium on all projects that have state funding because they are forced to pay higher wages outside of the competitive market. There is a good reason no other state that has implemented Right to Work has repealed it. It’s bad for workers’ rights and bad for taxpayers.”

Despite Lightner’s opposition, both proposals now advance to the Senate for further consideration.

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