Michigan’s economy has been on the upswing since it passed right-to-work legislation in 2012, with employment climbing 7 percent, private-sector wages increasing 4.9 percent, an unemployment falling from 9 percent to 4.5 percent – below even the national average.

Right to work has even helped unions, which have seen numbers climb now that they must earn the business of members. Mackinac Center’s Director of Labor Policy F. Vincent Vernuccio and adjunct scholar Jeremy Lott argue in an op-ed published by The Detroit News that Michigan’s labor reforms should continue.

They suggest four reforms that could help Michigan and its unions see continued growth: Enact Worker’s Choice, require re-certification, demand transparency and reform release time, each of which is detailed in the op-ed.

The more we can root out many of the entrenched problems associated with compulsory unionism, the better. While much has been done in private sector unions, it’s important to move serious union reforms further in the public sector.

Just in time for Labor Day, the Mackinac Center for Public Policy has released Top Labor Reforms for Michigan. The guide, authored by Vernuccio, includes 13 reforms lawmakers could make to further improve the workplace and support workers. A copy of the guide has been sent to every state lawmaker in Michigan.

Read Top Labor Reforms for Michigan

Read the full op-ed in The Detroit News here.

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