FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
News from Progress Michigan
June 30, 2015
Contact: Sam Inglot, 616-916-0574, sam@progressmichigan.org
Gov. Snyder Signs Death Star Bill, Attacks Workers Across Michigan
Corporate-backed bill will allow big business to run roughshod over communities
LANSING — Today, Gov. Rick Snyder silenced the voices of millions of Michiganders by signing legislation that prevents local governments from protecting workers, raising wages and ensuring communities benefit from new development.
The bill, known as the Death Star bill, prohibits local governments from passing paid sick day, minimum wage, prevailing wage and community benefit ordinances.
Originally, the bill had sweeping language that would have barred any ordinance from passing that dictated the terms between an employee and an employer — leaving the door open for many unintended consequences. The newest version is laser-focused on preventing local governments from passing pro-worker policies.
“Now that the language has been removed that would’ve opened the door for unintended consequences, the crux of this bill is abundantly clear: it’s designed to attack workers and limit local democracy,” said Lonnie Scott, executive director of Progress Michigan. “Gov. Snyder has led a coordinated attack on democracy and workers ever since he set foot into office and this is the next iteration of that effort. The freedom to fight for a better future for our communities is being clobbered by Gov. Snyder and his conservative cronies in the legislature. There’s a reason we called this bill the ‘Death Star’ — it’s a symbol of the tyrannical power that Gov. Snyder has wielded during his tenure as governor and it silences the voices of millions of Michiganders.”
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