The Michigan state Senate recently passed two bills that would preserve the independence of small businesses and their employees’ rights to decide for themselves whether to unionize. The bills — SB 492 and SB 493 — were approved by the senate on the same day union-backed protesters took to the streets to demand a $15 minimum wage and make it easier to unionize workers at franchised fast food restaurants.

Mackinac Center Director of Labor Policy F. Vincent Vernuccio authored an op-ed published by Forbes on Nov. 23 that explains why the Senate bills are so important to protecting the rights of mom-and-pop businesses:

The unions’ goal is to take away the secret ballot from employees by having corporations like McDonald’s recognize them without an election. Further, instead of having to convince millions of employees in thousands of small businesses to sign up for paying union dues, unions know it’s much easier to engage in one massive campaign across the country and put pressure on one large company.

To do this, they are trying to destroy the independence of thousands of small mom and pop-owned businesses through the federal National Labor Relations Board.

And that is where the Michigan state Senate weighed in, passing two bills that essentially say, “Not in our state you don’t.”

The full op-ed can be read at the Forbes website.

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