Michigan Proposal 12-2, Right to Organize and Collectively Bargain Initiative (2012)

Michigan Proposal 12-2
Election date November 6, 2012
Topic Labor and unions
Status Defeated
Type Initiated constitutional amendment	Origin Citizens

Michigan Proposal 12-2 was on the ballot as an initiated constitutional amendment in Michigan on November 6, 2012. It was defeated.

A “yes” vote supported establishing the right of employees to organize and collectively bargain through unions.

A “no” vote opposed establishing the right of employees to organize and collectively bargain through unions.

Aftermath

Lawsuits

Following a 2-2 vote in the Board of Stat Canvassers that prevented the amendment form reaching the ballot, supporters filed lawsuits in both the Michigan Court of Appeals and the Michigan Supreme Court.

On Wednesday, August 22, the Michigan Supreme Court issued a ruling ordering the court of appeals to decide the matter by Monday, August 27.

Election results

Michigan Proposal 12-2
Result		Votes	Percentage
Yes		1,949,513	42.60%
No		2,626,731	57.40%

Results are officially certified.

Source

Text of measure

Ballot title

The ballot title for Proposal 12-2 was as follows:

“

PROPOSAL 12-2 A PROPOSAL TO AMEND THE STATE CONSTITUTION REGARDING COLLECTIVE BARGAINING This proposal would: Grant public and private employees the constitutional right to organize and bargain collectively through labor unions. Invalidate existing or future state or local laws that limit the ability to join unions and bargain collectively, and to negotiate and enforce collective bargaining agreements, including employees' financial support of their labor unions. Laws may be enacted to prohibit public employees from striking. Override state laws that regulate hours and conditions of employment to the extent that those laws conflict with collective bargaining agreements. Define "employer" as a person or entity employing one or more employees. Should this proposal be approved?

”

Full Text

The full text of this measure is available here.

Support

Primary support for the amendment came from a campaign coalition called Protect Our Jobs.

Supporters

The following groups were reported as supporters of the Protect Our Jobs campaign.

• Michigan UAW
• Michigan Education Association
• We Are The People – Michigan
• Michigan Nurses Association
• Lecturers’ Employee Organization
• Michigan branch of the American Federation of Teachers
• Michigan AFL-CIO
• Michigan State Utility Workers Council
• National Education Association
• Progress Michigan
• Michigan Democratic Party
• Michigan PTA
• AFSCME
• Teamsters
• Michigan Democratic Party

Arguments

• Some key arguments listed by supporters were that the measure would:

• Establish the people’s rights to organize to form, join or assist unions and to bargain collectively with public or private employers regarding wages, hours and other terms and conditions of employment.
• Prohibit employers from retaliating against their employees for exercising those rights and interfering with those rights in other ways.
• Protect current laws establishing minimum wages, hours and working conditions.

• Supporters also argued that the amendment was needed to prevent possible right-to-work legislation in the future. Such legislation would remove union membership from the condition of employment at a unionized job.

Campaign contributions

In Michigan campaign finance information related to ballot measures is organized by ballot question committees. The following data was obtained from the state Campaign Finance Committee:

Committee info:

Committee	Amount raised	Amount spent
Protect Our Jobs	$8,067,869.79	$1,153,619.11
Total	$8,067,869.79	$1,153,619.11

Opposition

Opponents

• Michigan Governor Rick Snyder
• Representative Mike Shirkey
• Michigan Chamber of Commerce
• Citizens Protecting Michigan's Constitution
• Associated Builders and Contractors of Michigan
• Business Leaders For Michigan
• Detroit Regional Chamber
• Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce
• Michigan Association of Realtors
• Michigan Manufacturers Association
• Small Business Association of Michigan
• West Michigan Policy Forum
• Michigan Association of School Boards
• Michigan Association of School Administrators
• Michigan Republican Party

Arguments

• Michigan Gov. Snyder came out against the ballot measure during the signature gathering process asking that supporters back off on their petition drive. However, Gov. Snyder has also discouraged his own party from pursuing "right-to-work" legislation. He believed that both "right-to-work" bill and the initiatives that would prevent them are too divisive, saying, in March, that, "My concern is that could start a whole divisive atmosphere of other people trying to put right-to-work on the ballot, a whole bunch of things like that, and that would distract from the good things we've got going on."

• In a press release published in September 2012, Gov. Snyder said, "I am a supporter of collective bargaining, but Proposal Two would amend our constitution to change the way bargaining would work in our state. It could lead to unlimited wage increases and early retirements with lavish pensions - all at the taxpayers' expense. It rolls back Michigan labor laws made over the last 30 or 40 years. This proposal should be called "the Back in Time amendment." It would seriously harm Michigan's ability to keep moving forward."

• Rep. Shirkey, a proponent of "Right-to-Work" legislation, called the initiative a "union-boss ballot initiative [that] would be horrible for businesses."

• Opponents also feared that the measure could result in Michigan being less competitive than other states in attracting business due its strengthened labor organizations.

Campaign contributions

In Michigan campaign finance information related to ballot measures is organized by ballot question committees. The data contained below reflects the total campaign finance records of Citizens Protecting Michigan's Constitution, there is no available breakdown by individual measures available. The following data was obtained from the state Campaign Finance Committee:

Committee info:

Committee	Amount raised	Amount spent
Citizens Protecting Michigan's Constitution	$340,150.00	$52,274.58
Total	$340,150.00	$52,274.58

Polls

See also: Polls, 2012 ballot measures

• An EPIC-MRA poll conducted on September 8-11, 2012, found that 48 percent were in support of the measure, while 43 percent were opposed, and another 9% were undecided. The poll was based on a poll of 600 likely voters and has a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percent.

Legend      Position is ahead and at or over 50%     Position is ahead or tied, but under 50%

Date of Poll	Pollster	In favor	Opposed	Undecided	Number polled
September 8-11, 2012	EPIC-MRA	48%	43%	9%	600

Path to the ballot

See also: Signature requirements for ballot measures in Michigan

An initiated constitutional amendment is a citizen-initiated ballot measure that amends a state's constitution. Eighteen (18) states allow citizens to initiate constitutional amendments.

In Michigan, the number of signatures required for an initiated constitutional amendment is equal to 10% of the votes cast in the last gubernatorial election. A simple majority vote is required for voter approval.

On Monday, March 19, 2012, the Board of State Canvassers approved the form and language of the ballot measure petition, clearing it for circulation. This review process does not certify the amendment's language.

On Wednesday, June 13 supporters turned in 684,286 signatures, more than twice what is needed to qualify for the ballot, to the Michigan Secretary of State. Since the signature requirement was met, the amendment was sent to the State Board of Canvassers to be approved before being placed in front of voters.

Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette released a legal analysis of the measure stating that it was too complicated for the ballot and could not be accurately described to voters in the summary with its limit of 100 words. This analysis was part of the debate whether or not to place the measure on the ballot to be made by the State Board of Canvassers.

After a tie 2-2 vote in the Board of State Canvassers, the measure was held from the ballot. However, Protect Our Jobs filed an appeal of the decision with both the Michigan Court of Appeals and the Michigan Supreme Court.

Following a ruling by the Michigan Court of Appeals, the board voted 3-0 in favor of certifying the measure on Monday, August 27, 2012.

See also

2012 Measures

• 2012 Measures
• Labor and unions on the ballot
• 2012 legislative sessions

Michigan

• Michigan ballot measures
• Michigan ballot measure laws

News and analysis

• Ballot measure lawsuits
• Ballot measure readability
• Ballot measure polls

External links

• Michigan Bureau of Elections, "Initiatives and Referendums Under the Constitution of the State of Michigan of 1963," January 2019
• Senate Fiscal Agency, "November 2012 Ballot Proposal 12-2 An Overview"