Advocacy News – June 14, 2023
Should local units of government have the legal right to establish their own laws governing private sector wages, benefits and more? That was the topic of a House Labor Committee hearing on Thursday, with local units of government arguing in favor and the Michigan Chamber and other business groups against.
House Bill 4237, sponsored by Rep. Andrews (D-St. Joseph), would repeal the Local Government Labor Regulatory Limitation Act (“Act”), which prohibits local governments from adopting, enforcing and/or administering a patchwork mess of ordinances, policies or resolutions regulating private sector wages, paid or unpaid leave requirements, other fringe benefits, regulations on work stoppages or strikes, and the types of questions included on employment applications or during the job interview.
The Michigan Chamber was a champion of the Act when it was passed in 2015 because it gave exclusive jurisdiction to the state and federal government to govern private sector employers’ relations with their employees. Without such law in place, Michigan’s 1,800-plus local units of government hold the power to enact different inflexible and burdensome employment regulations on businesses. These mandates can be costly and complex for businesses and significantly deter economic development in jurisdictions that choose to enact them and hurt our state’s overall competitiveness.
Michigan is not alone in giving the state and federal government exclusive authority to regulate private employment policies. Forty-four states have moved to preempt local labor laws, a trend that has picked up significantly since 2013.
The House Labor Committee did not vote on the proposal Thursday. They plan to resume testimony on the legislation either the week of June 22 or 29.
The Chamber is working with a broad and diverse coalition to oppose HB 4237. View the coalition’s memo to see the full list of 27 organizations who have joined our efforts to date.
If you wish to get involved with the coalition or have questions, please contact Wendy Block at wblock@micahmber.com.