GOODBYE, FOR NOW: Michigan frets about the departure of young people after college, but it’s important to remember that such leavings are a typical rite, says Brunch with Bridge columnist John Schneider. (courtesy photo/used under Creative Commons license) I reared my children to be independent and adventuresome, and look what happened: They became independent and […]
Indiana
Posted inPeter Luke: Eye on the Capitol
What does Michigan have to do to get a little love?
Gov. Rick Snyder has spared no effort in making Michigan “business-friendly,” but the message has been slow to spread. So Michigan cuts business taxes by $2.4 billion, stages a political war (because that’s apparently what’s been lacking) that favors business over labor, more than balances the state budget and finally takes ownership of arguably its […]
Posted inTalent & Education
As Right to Work takes root, MEA faces rough lessons from Wisconsin
LABOR LOSS: Protesters packed the Wisconsin State Capitol in 2011 in opposition to restrictions on public-sector union organizing. Since the restrictions were implemented, the number of public-sector union worker has dropped 21 percent. (courtesy photo/used under Creative Commons license) In the hectic days of last December, as the Michigan Legislature prepared to pass a Right-to-Work […]
Posted inLand O Links
Land O Links
(Bridge archive photo) *Not all charter schools in Michigan are alike. Some focus on quality; others focus on marketing to attract parental attention, reports Michigan Radio. This leaves some high-quality charters still struggling to enroll students. *In Indiana, “lawmakers are considering forgiving $12 million in loans that ‘failing’ charter schools accepted from the state. Isn’t this […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
Labor says it will prevail, but RTW experts are skeptical
FORT WAYNE, Ind. — Given recent events in Indiana, third-shift General Motors worker Roxanna Lucas was “not surprised” when Michigan followed suit by adopting a Right to Work labor standard. Lucas, like many coworkers at the sprawling suburban Fort Wayne GM assembly plant, sees RTW as nothing less than a calculated scheme to take down […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
Indiana reaction belies pro-Right to Work claims
FORT WAYNE, Ind. — In the weeks after “Right to Work” became law in Indiana, Michigan-based Android Industries was anointed a poster child for the job growth state officials predicted would flow from the measure. Company officials insisted it was no accident they picked Indiana to open an automotive plant in suburban Fort Wayne in […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
Political fallout from RTW deal yet to land
INDIANAPOLIS — With passage of Right to Work legislation imminent, Indiana Democrats huddled on a Monday night in February 2011 to plot strategy. The following morning, some three dozen state representatives bolted for the Comfort Suites in Urbana, Ill., trying to wait out a Republican majority determined to push the measure through. The move left […]
Posted inGuest Commentary
Guest column: Right to Work is no guarantee of economic success
By Timothy J. Bartik/W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research Will “Right to Work” boost Michigan’s economic development? What does research say? Research suggests that the economic development effects of RTW are uncertain, with downside risks. Some studies find RTW boosts job growth, while other studies do not. Some studies find RTW reduces wages, while other […]
Posted inMichigan Government
Genesis of Prop 2 found in Right to Work debate
For years, it was unthinkable that Michigan, the cradle of the labor movement, might ever become a Right to Work state. Union workers helped build the state, union power shaped its politics and the idea of severing the two would be like Georgia rejecting peaches. Things are different now. The battle over Proposal 2, which […]
Posted inLand O Links
Land O Links
“You can’t know too much, but you can say too much” — Calvin Coolidge, president of the United States, 1923-1929. * The operator of a charter school for Muskegon Heights promises a public meeting a bunch of big changes. Among them: “school days will be longer – 7 ½ hours”; the school year “will include […]
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