New Right-to-Work Website Can Help Union Workers Opt Out of Membership; Provides Information on Benefits of Being a Right-to-Work State

For Immediate Release
Thursday, April4, 2013
Contact: Ted O'Neil
Media Relations Manager
989-698-1914

MIDLAND — The Mackinac Center for Public Policy today released a new website that answers questions about Michigan’s right-to-work law and provides sample opt-out letters that workers can use to begin exercising their new freedoms under right-to-work, according to Labor Policy Director F. Vincent Vernuccio.

“Since the day Gov. Rick Snyder signed the legislation making Michigan the 24th right-to-work state in the nation, we’ve been getting phone calls and emails from union members all across the state asking how they can finally exercise their right to choose whether or not to financially support their union,” Vernuccio said. “This new website answers questions for union and non-union members. Through a one-of-a-kind feature, workers can click through a simple series of ‘yes/no’ questions and find out if right-to-work applies to them. Union members who choose to do so can print off a letter that they can use in order to opt out their union.”

MIWorkerFreedom.org also has FAQ sections for public- and private-sector workers, a collection of essays and commentaries on right-to-work by Mackinac Center experts, and data explaining why right-to-work states enjoy faster population and job growth, better wage growth and more disposable income.

“This new website will be an important and useful tool for Michigan residents searching for answers — including those who wish to voluntarily continue to financially support their union — as well as the general public,” Vernuccio said. “In the long run, right-to-work will mean more and better jobs for Michigan and, we hope, stronger unions that are more accountable to their membership and focus on their workers rather than the special interests.”

The full website can be found at www.MIWorkerFreedom.org.

The Mackinac Center for Public Policy is a research and educational institute headquartered in Midland, Mich. The largest state-based free-market think tank in the country celebrates its 25th anniversary this year.

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