Rick Snyder Pushes Through 'Right to Work For Less'

     Rick Snyder did it yesterday, he pushed through major anti labor legislation, the Orwellian "Right to Work" law. This is 180 degrees from what he said during the election season when he argued that GOP Governors should cool it on such polarizing anti-union legalisation.

     "Gov. Rick Snyder (R) officially made Michigan a "right-to-work" state on Tuesday, signing into law two bills that significantly diminish the power of unions."

     "I have signed these bills into law. ... We are moving forward on the topic of workplace fairness and equality," he said at a press conference on Tuesday evening, just hours after the state House passed the bills."

    "Right-to-work laws forbid contracts between companies and unions that require all workers to pay the union for bargaining on their behalf. Although business groups and conservatives cast the issue in terms of workplace freedom, unions note that the laws allow workers to opt out of supporting the union although they reap the benefits of the collective bargaining. Since the laws tend to weaken unions generally, unions, as well as President Barack Obama, call the legislation "right to work for less."

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/11/rick-snyder-right-to-work_n_2280050.html

    Snyder claims the reason he did it was because the labor unions pushed Proposal 2 onto November's ballot.

    "The governor repeatedly said he didn't want right to work on the agenda, arguing it would be incredibly divisive in the state. In his press conference on Tuesday, Snyder blamed unions' actions for the reason he signed the bill, pointing to their pushing of Proposal 2. The ballot measure, which would have enshrined collective bargaining rights in the state constitution, was rejected by voters in November."

   "The timing of such is something I didn't seek out," he said. "But really what took place this summer with Proposal 2 triggered the dialogue and discussion on this. I asked labor leaders not to move forward with a ballot proposal because I knew it could trigger a discussion that could lead to right to work being a divisive issue. Unfortunately they moved forward, it became divisive, and it was time to step up and take a leadership position, which I believe I've done, with good teamwork in the legislature."

    He had it right before when he said it was too divisive. If you look at the legacy of other GOP Governors who have done this it's not encouraging for Snyder. In Ohio, Kasich's SB 5 was defeated in a referendum. While Walker survived a recall in June, he lost his Republican Senate.

    What is really going on? Was it because of Proposal 2? My guess that this is partly that Republicans are seeing the state level has their best hope to promote their anti middle class agenda as things are only getting worse for them at the federal level.

     Snyder tried to argue that this is actually pro-worker. Talk about Orwellian:

     "Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder (R) defended his state's right-to-work legislation on Wednesday, saying it will lead to more jobs and give workers "freedom of choice."

      "I don't believe this is actually anti-union," he said on MSNBC's "Morning Joe." "If you look at it, I believe this is pro-worker."

     "MSNBC's Richard Wolffe pressed the governor on the legislation, saying the it "undermines" the ability for unions to organize."

     "This does not deal with organizing at all," Snyder responded. "This does not deal with collective bargaining at all. This has nothing to do with the relationship between an employer and a union. This is about the relationship between unions and workers. And this is about giving workers the power to choose."

     http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entry/michigan-guv-defends-right-to-work-gives-workers?ref=fpb

     Unions are planning to fight back:

     Before the ink was dry on Michigan’s new laws, however, labor leaders were huddling to decide how to undo the Republican-controlled legislature’s signature achievement. The fight for union rights in Michigan is just beginning, they say.

    "Union activists told TPM Tuesday that they haven’t decided on the immediate course of action following Synder’s announcement. But they are actively mulling several options that could see the law dragged into the courts or placed before voters."

    "Whatever happens, the labor groups say, expect union attempts to exact political vengeance in 2014 when Snyder and other Republican members of the legislature who pushed the legislation are up for reelection."

     "The likely first decision for pro-labor groups is whether to try and overturn the new right-to-work law at the ballot box. Republicans specifically crafted the bill to make it referendum-proof, but labor groups say they may have found a way around them by using a “statutory initiative,” which requires gathering signatures equal to at least 8 percent of the votes cast in the last gubernatorial election.
A spokesperson for the AFL-CIO told TPM Tuesday that the decision to pursue a referendum hasn’t been made yet. It’s possible the groups may skip over an expensive and complicated referendum process in favor of targeting state Republicans for defeat in 2014."

     http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2012/12/whats-next-in-michigan.php?ref=fpb

     This must have political ramifications. For Snyder to this brazenly thumb his nose and to do a 180 from his previous statements, there must be political blowback. GOP Governors must be made to understand that this is a loser for them.