Michigan state employees have plenty to worry about these days with Rick Snyder soon taking the oath of governor -- a politician who said clearly during his campaign that employee salary and benefits would be on the table in any plan to cut the projected $1.6 billion deficit next year.
Now, they may have more thing to worry about – a retired state employee named Steve Harry.
The Lansing man, who worked two decades as a state employee, mostly in the Department of Human Services, has filed proposed ballot petitions that would dissolve the state Senate, end term limits for lawmaker and prohibit any requirements to pay union dues as a condition of employment in Michigan.
Of biggest potential concern to state and local employees is another provision repealing collective bargaining rights for these employees.
Harry, who says he doesn’t believe he ever belonged to a union as a state employee, is a man on a mission. He believes unions have driven up wages both in the public and private sectors, and he believes that eliminating union rights will spur job creation and curb the state’s high unemployment rate.
Despite his passion, he still is lacking the $2 million to $3 million needed for a viable ballot measure campaign or any volunteers to help gather the 322,000 signatures needed to get most of the proposals on the ballot.
Meanwhile, Michigan union leaders say they are not really concerned. But they were concerned enough to show up Friday at a meeting of the state Board of Canvassers meeting, which approved Harry’s forms.
Michigan AFL-CIO President Mark Gaffney said union groups are ready to step in with resources to campaign against the ballot measures, if they meet with much public support.
“We’ll be watching closely,” Gaffney said.
