Professional Documents
Culture Documents
FOR EVERYONE
A POLICY PLATFORM
A BETTER MICHIGAN FOR EVERYONE
FOR MICHIGAN’S WORKING FAMILIES
1 MICHIGAN AFL-CIO POLICY PLATFORM
PROTECTING OUR
FREEDOM
TO JOIN TOGETHER
“
our families. labor federation’s organizing,
We need the legislative advocacy, and
power in But right now, elected officials electoral work. We will require
like Donald Trump, Rick Snyder, all candidates seeking our
numbers of Bill Schuette, and Brian Calley endorsement to affirm their
are rigging the rules of our support for these priorities –
unions more economy to favor their wealthy and our platform will help shape
than ever to corporate donors, and taking our legislative scorecard, which
away the freedoms people in will be used to educate our
fight for our unions have won for all of us. members about their
lawmakers’ voting records in
rights and elect It doesn’t have to be this way. Lansing.
We need the power in numbers
leaders who of unions more than ever to Michigan has so much great
will have our fight for our rights and elect work to be done: roads to be
leaders who will have our backs. paved, kids to be taught, and
backs. By standing together and energy to be generated. Now is
making our voices heard, we the time for all working people
can protect the things our to stand together so we can
families need and build a better build an economy that works for
Michigan for all of us: with everyone – not just the wealthy
better schools, better roads, and and powerful.
better jobs.
“
a spouse who’s sick, everyone knows being there inspectors in
and providing for your family isn’t optional. Michigan All working
who are
All working people should have a fair shot at the
responsible for people should
American dream, with the freedom to negotiate
enforcing workplace
together in union for better jobs with strong have a fair shot
health and safety laws
paychecks, good benefits, a secure retirement, and
more time to be with family. Because real freedom
that protect 4.2 at the
million workers in the
is about more than making a living – it’s also about
state. At the current American
having time to take a loved one to the doctor when
rate, it would take
they get sick, attend a parent-teacher conference dream, with
these 56 inspectors
for your kids, and retire in dignity.
51 years to inspect the freedom to
each work site in
OUR PRIORITIES Michigan just one negotiate
Guarantee our freedom to come together in time.
union to negotiate with our employers for strong
together.
paychecks, good benefits, safe workplaces, and a Everyone deserves a
secure retirement. Since 2011, Governor Snyder safe place to work. It’s time for the federal
and corporate lobbyists have worked nonstop to government and the state of Michigan to make
take away rights from working people. We must workplace health and safety laws a top priority. We
THE SOLUTION
Rebuilding our infrastructure will jumpstart our warranties, to protect taxpayers and ensure our
economy and create thousands of good-paying roads stay fixed.
jobs for working people right here in Michigan. We
We also need our governor to start working with
need real solutions to fix our crumbling roads and
Republicans and Democrats from Michigan’s
bridges without forcing regular families to foot the
congressional delegation to end Michigan’s status
bill for everything. It’s time for wealthy corporations
as a donor state, and bring more of our tax dollars
to start paying their fair share to fix the roads, and
back home to Michigan to help fix our roads and
we need to protect prevailing wage to ensure our
bridges.
roads are built by well-trained Michigan
construction workers. Grow and develop a highly-skilled workforce.
To fix our crumbling roads and bridges, Michigan
OUR PRIORITIES needs a workforce that has the skills to get the job
Rebuild Michigan’s crumbling roads and done right: on-time and on-budget. The training
bridges. Michigan families need good roads to and apprenticeship programs offered through
take our kids to school and get to work safely Michigan’s Building Trades unions offer our young
without blowing a tire or busting an axle. To make it people an opportunity to get the skills they need to
happen, we must develop a bipartisan road compete for good jobs with fair pay and benefits,
funding solution that requires corporations that and without any student debt. Instead of attacking
were given a $2 billion tax break by Governor Building Trades unions – which provide these vital
Snyder – and benefit from our roads – to pay their training programs at no cost to taxpayers – the
fair share to repair them, without forcing regular state should treat them as partners, by working to
families to foot the bill for everything. Any road link career and technical education and job
plan must also include strong and enforceable
“
We need strong policies on the books to require government
contracts be used to create good jobs right here at home.
A BETTER MICHIGAN FOR EVERYONE 13 MICHIGAN AFL-CIO POLICY PLATFORM
strong Buy American provisions to ensure our health care legislation that will take health care
roads and bridges get fixed with steel made in away from millions of Americans and raise the cost
America, not China. of prescription drugs for Michigan families.
As a labor movement, the Michigan AFL-CIO, our We need our elected leaders to stand up to the
affiliates, and labor councils are committed to insurance and drug lobby, and work together to
building strong, healthy, and vibrant communities protect and strengthen Medicare, stop outrageous
across the state. The state labor federation prescription drug price increases, and ensure no
encourages all labor unions to negotiate contract one is forced into financial ruin because of pre-
language that requires a union label verifying that existing conditions, extremely high deductibles, or
products and services are made or provided by lifetime caps on coverage. Our elected leaders in
union workers. The Michigan AFL-CIO is also proud Lansing must also work to protect access to mental
to affirm our support for the AFL-CIO Community health care for Michigan residents, and strongly
Services Labor Liaison program within the oppose any effort by big insurance companies to
framework of the State Association of United Ways privatize community mental health services, which
– which helps to build financial and community will lead to higher costs and worse care.
support for the many community health and
human services agencies that provide much- Michigan must also work to ensure every veteran
needed services to Michigan families. who served our nation in uniform has access to
good jobs, quality, affordable health care and a
Embrace our diversity and oppose all forms of strong, fully funded and staffed VA. Our
workforce discrimination. Michigan’s diversity is congressional delegation must vigorously oppose
one of our greatest strengths. Hate speech and any efforts to cut or privatize services at Michigan’s
discrimination should have no place in our great three VA hospitals. The state must also work to
state. We must strengthen and strictly enforce civil reverse Governor Snyder’s disastrous privatization
rights laws that guarantee equal rights for all, and at the Grand Rapids Home for Veterans by firing
work to ensure that no one is discriminated against the for-profit management firm and hiring well-
or profiled based on their race, ethnicity, trained state employees to ensure our veterans
birthplace, ability, gender identity, or sexual receive the care they have earned.
orientation. It’s time for Michigan to get on the
right side of history by finally amending the Elliott-
Larsen Civil Rights Act to ban discrimination
against the LGBT community, because no one
should ever be fired from their job or evicted from
their home because they’re LGBT.
“
education.
We believe nobody who works
Working people need a better deal on
taxes, and that means ending tax breaks full time should ever be living in
for companies that ship Michigan jobs poverty.
overseas, getting rid of the Snyder Retirement Tax,
and expanding the Earned Income Tax Credit for
for a family member when they get sick. Enacting
working families. Reforming our tax system also
strong earned paid sick leave policies will help
means requiring the wealthiest 1 percent and
strengthen families, improve public health, and
corporations to start contributing their fair share to
increase overall workplace productivity.
improve our schools, fix our roads, and protect
Social Security and Medicare. Provide job protections for pregnancy-related
medical conditions. All working women should be
Establish a $15 minimum wage for all working
eligible for up to three months of job-protected
people so they can provide for their families.
leave if they are disabled by pregnancy, childbirth,
We believe nobody who works full time should
or a related medical condition. Also, pregnant
ever be living in poverty. To rewrite the rules of the
women with a doctor’s recommendation should
labor market and strengthen worker bargaining
have access to reasonable workplace
power, we need to increase the minimum wage to
accommodations, including transferring to a less
$15 to account for inflation, the entry of more
hazardous or strenuous position. Expanding
women into the workforce, and the vastly increased
pregnancy-related job protections will make our
productivity of working people.
economy fairer for working women, and
Adopt strong earned paid sick leave policies to strengthen Michigan families.
ensure all working people have the freedom to
take time off work to recover from an illness or care