Score one for the good guys

The Michigan Court of Appeals has once again ordered the Republicans on the Board of State Canvassers to halt their efforts to disenfranchise hundreds of thousands of Michigan voters and directed them to place the Protect Working Families, formerly Protect Our Jobs, ballot initiative on the November ballot.

This marks the second time the Court of Appeals has done this after ordering the elections board to put the repeal of Public Act 4, the Emergency Manager Law, on the ballot as well. Opponents of that took their fight to the Supreme Court where they ultimately lost.

More after the jump.

Workers and progressives unite!

Worker’s rights group Workers’ Voice is spearheading a massive grassroots effort to defeat Republicans, teaming up with another progressive force of nature, MoveOn.org:

On the weekend before the Republican National Convention, working families will kick off the national 2012 grassroots canvasses across the country to talk to their friends, family, neighbors, and co-workers about the radical Romney/Ryan agenda that will outsource jobs, end Medicare and raise taxes on middle class families to give tax cuts to millionaires…

Much more after the jump.

When you’re in the news this much, something is wrong

It’s not unusual for a state Attorney General to be in the news from time to time. If they are doing their job, that’s part of the job description. But Michigan AG Bill Schuette finds himself at the center of not one, but TWO big news stories. What his involvement in these two stories shows is that Bill Schuette is using his position as the Attorney General of Michigan to pursue a hardcore right wing, anti-labor agenda that benefits his political allies and harms his political foes.

Details after the jump.

Like we didn’t see THAT coming…

The Michigan Board of State Canvassers today deadlocked on putting the Protect Working Families (formerly Protect Our Jobs) ballot initiative on the November ballot. With help from Republican Attorney General Bill Schuette who recently issued a ruling saying the ballot proposal is unconstitutional, the two Republicans on the elections board refused to certify the petitions.

Details and information on how you can help after the jump.

You are NOT alone!

As I wrote about back in July, our friends at Working America have launched the “Dear David” campaign where workers, unionized or not, can get answers to their labor and work-related questions.

Well, now you can access the “Dear David” website directly from their widget on Eclectablog. Just click through on the widget at the top of the right sidebar to see answers to questions others have asked or to ask one of your own. The response to their project has been fantastic with nearly 200 questions submitted since it began.

More details after the jump.

When union families win, we ALL win

The Protect Our Jobs ballot proposal has gathered enough petition signatures to be placed on the November ballot and awaits approval by the Michigan Board of State Canvassers. The measure will enshrine collective bargaining rights in the state Constitution, ensuring that anti-Labor forces won’t be able to deny Michigan workers their legal right to bargain for better wages and benefits.

The organizers of the effort have shifted their emphasis from “Protect Our Jobs” to “Protect Working Families”, a more descriptive title for what they are trying to accomplish.

You are NOT alone!

Working America, the 3-million strong group supporting American workers (not just unionized workers — ALL workers), has introduced a new website called “Dear David”. In today’s work environment, it’s often tough to know what your rights are as a worker and it’s even tougher to know where to turn to get answers to those questions.

“Dear David” is intended to change that. Details after the jump.

Welcome! We saved you a seat!

After sitting on the sidelines for over a year in the battle to repeal Public Act 4 — Michigan’s anti-democratic Emergency Manager Law — the Michigan AFL-CIO labor union has now entered the fray. They are participating in a rally at the Michigan Court of Appeals next Wednesday.

Details after the jump.

When you don’t have the votes, you cheat

An anti-democracy group ironically called Citizens Protecting Michigan’s Constitution is asking Republican Secretary of State Ruth Johnson to throw away the petitions containing nearly 700,000 signatures to keep the Protect Our Jobs referendum off the November ballot, saying:

“We believe that you have a clear legal duty to reject the filed petition and to refuse to further process it, canvass the signatures or to refer the petition to the Board of State Canvassers for certification to the ballot.”

Over-achievers or show-offs? How about rock stars?! In a stunning display of the power of labor unions in Michigan, supporters of a ballot proposal to enshrine collective bargaining rights in the state constitution today turned in over twice as many signatures as they needed to but the measure on the November ballot. The group, Protect Our Jobs, needed less than […]

Really, Republicans, why are you wasting our time?

In a typical anti-union move by Republicans, they have submitted a Senate resolution (S.J. Res. 36) that would reverse a new National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) rule that will speed up workplace votes on the formation of unions.

President Obama issued a statement today saying he will veto this legislation if it reaches his desk.

[More after the jump…]